That's My Girl
by PrincessPalmtree
Summary: A sequel to "Mr. and Mrs. Matthews" set 10 years in the future. LaSalle has gone missing as Percy and the NCIS team race against the clock to not only find him, but his abductor. This is a Multi-Chapter story consisting of suspense, flashbacks, and domestic fluff. The whole Persalle package. Rated T. Please Review!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** **Hey guys! I'm back with more Persalle adventures for you. I apologize it took me so long to come up with the next story, but I've been busy with school and family,** _ **plus**_ **I wanted everything to perfect after 'Mr. and Mrs. Matthews' went so well. Thanks so much for all the love and comments I've received on that story! And now, the moment you've all been waiting for… you sent me so many prompts and I've asked opinions from so many people, and after careful deliberation, I decided this new story will be a sequel to 'Mr. and Mrs. Matthews,'** _ **with a twist!**_ **The storyline will be set ten years in the future after the fateful day that took place in New York City with the Livingston family. We'll see what Percy and LaSalle, as well as the NCIS team, have been up to and what things have changed in the decade they've shared together. Plus, I have quite a suspenseful storyline planned that will take place in present time, 2026, while providing flashbacks throughout the entire story so you can see how things have lead up to where they are now. Be prepared for laughs, smiles, tears, and hold your breath! This is going to be a multi-chapter. I hope you all enjoy what I have in store. (In regards to the "baby daddy" storyline currently taking place on the show, that will not affect my story whatsoever, this being fanfic and all.)**

 **Please Review! I'd love to hear from you.**

 **Disclaimer:** **I do not own any characters affiliated with the T.V program NCIS: New Orleans.**

…

"I'll ask this one last time Mrs. LaSalle,are you _certain_ you have no clue to your husband's whereabouts?" the director of the FBI prodded, swinging his large frame around the table to take a seat adjacent to the woman in question. The mood between the pair had grown from uncomfortable to intense in the past few minutes.

"What do you mean am _I_ certain? He's been missing seven hours and I'll I've been hearing from you and your people are empty answers! Why am I in question, exactly?" Sonja interjected, leaning forward, her fingernails digging into the table in the conference room positioned upstairs in the NCIS headquarters.

"You're not under investigation, if that's what you're asking," the man replied in his smooth baritone voice.

"I figured, otherwise I'd be downstairs locked in the interrogation room with you and your goons surrounding me." Sonja released an unsteady breath as she rubbed her arms in distress.

"Ma'am, I assure you, I am _not_ here to be the enemy. All I'm trying to do is create a timeline from last night to this morning and determine how and where your husband may have been abducted."

" _May have?_ God!" Sonja threw her head into her hands. "Chris isn't the kind of man to up and leave his team, not mention his family, without a moment's notice. Furthermore, how in the hell could an agent just _vanish_ without a trace? I'm telling you something has gone terribly wrong."

"Yes, Mrs. LaSalle, I hear you and I'm inclined to believe that's true. In regards to your husband's character, when I began this position, I had the pleasure of meeting him for the first time two years ago. He seemed to be the perfect man to replace Agent Pride as the new Supervisory Special Agent on the NCIS team. He's done a spectacular job ever since. He displays kindness, responsibility, toughness- everything a leader of a team is required."

"Then if you _think_ you know him as well as you _say_ you do, Mr. Hill, then you know that his disappearance has nothing to do with his own 'personal agenda'," Sonja air-quoted with a frown. "Speaking of Pride, I got word that he would be meeting me here soon. Do you have any idea if he's arrived yet?"

The director stared into Sonja's eyes, which were giving off a gloomy expression. The dark circles resting underneath them were evident. He sighed and turned away to press a finger into his earpiece.

"Do I have an Agent Pride in the building?" he mumbled, pausing a second or two with a nod.

"He arrived about five minutes ago," he promptly informed her, standing to button his suit.

"Great. Can I leave now?" Sonja jumped to her feet as she swiftly pulled on her discarded jacket.

"You are free to leave, Mrs. LaSalle. However, I _do_ suggest you stay close to headquarters due to refusing our request to put you in a safe house. Creating a plan to stay with a friend for the time being would be a smart idea. I will spend most of the day interviewing Agent LaSalle's team as well as tracking down any possible witnesses. If I have any more questions for you, I'll give you a call." The man paused for a moment and cleared his throat, reaching out a concerned hand to touch her shoulder. "We'll find him. I promise."

Sonja glanced at the hand on her shoulder and brought her heavy eyes to meet his own.

"Don't make promises you can't keep," she whispered, breaking contact and sliding out the door.

It took Sonja all of two seconds to make it down the stairs and into the main floor, where she found Dwayne Pride leaning against a desk that used to be his own. When he caught sight of her, Pride launched himself forward and hurriedly met her in a hug, his reassuring arms embracing her. He pulled away, his hands remaining on her arms. His eyes distraughtly searched her face for answers.

"Sonja, I tried to get here as fast as I could. How are you doin'?"

"As well as I can, under the circumstances," she replied, wiping her nose.

"Is there any word about Christopher? Any leads?"

"No. Not yet."

"How is the FBI treating you? Do I need to speak to anyone? I most certainly can- ''

" _Dwayne_ ," Sonja breathed, pressing a hand to his chest. "I'm okay. They just finished interviewing me and I'm free to leave."

"Oh," he blinked. "That's good news. I assume you refused to stay in a safe house for the time being?"

"You know me too well."

Pride shook his head.

"Well, at least you aren't cooped up in that room. I wasn't about to let them keep you tied up all day, _especially_ with the kids in mind." He dropped his hands and took a curious sweep of the room. "Where are the little rascals, anyway?"

He saw a smile tug at her lips.

"I called Sebastian this morning, and he _graciously_ agreed to be an impromptu babysitter for me since he has an extra partner working in the lab. They should all be in the kitchen."

"Did he now?" Pride emitted a chuckle. "That doesn't surprise me one bit. Why don't we go check up on 'em? That is, if you're up to it. Don't let me rush you."

"I'm up to it. I always have time for my kids, no matter what."

Pride draped an arm around her as they made their way to the kitchen.

"You're an amazing mother, Sonja. I couldn't be more proud of you Christopher."

She gave a small smile, reaching up to squeeze his hand. When they approached the kitchen, the pair spotted Sebastian assembling a wooden railroad track atop the dining room table as two eager children watched in anticipation.

"Okay guys, I _think_ I fixed the glitches that were giving our trains a bit of trouble the first go-around. This design should work for us much better. Why don't we give it a try?" he announced, standing back to appreciate his craftsmanship, his hands on his hips. The group of playmates hadn't noticed the new arrivals who stood away from the doorframe, unwilling to disturb their moment of joy.

"Yeah! Let's do it!" a small girl exclaimed, placing her train on the track. A smaller boy, who could barely reach high enough to move a chair, began to make noises of frustration and stomp. Sebastian smiled as he scooped him up and held him outward as he placed his train on the track. The boy gave a funny grin and looked up at the man for approval. Sebastian awarded his efforts with a 'thumbs up', and sat his own train on the track.

"Alright conductors, is everybody ready? Let's get these trains to their destination!"

Sebastian crouched down so he and the boy could both lay a hand on their locomotives, as the girl placed both hands on hers with a mischievous smirk.

"On the count of three, we'll push off and let them go. Whoever makes it to the train station first, wins. Do all players understand the rules?"

"Yes," she nodded, bouncing on her heels.

"What about you, buddy? Do you understand the rules?"

"Ummm…" the little boy's mouth fell ajar as he scratched his head.

"Don't worry, I'll give you a helping hand. As long as your sister doesn't mind," Sebastian told him, cranking his head to gage her reaction.

"It's okay," she shrugged. "He's just a baby, anyway."

"No! Max a big boy!" the little boy screeched, attempting to lunge at his big sister.

"Hey now, let's display good sportsmanship towards each other. No name-calling or raising our voices. Agreed?"

"Agreed," the girl sighed. The boy pouted, but nodded nonetheless.

The group turned their attention back to the task at hand and prepared themselves for the race.

"On your mark! Get ready! One, two, three- go!"

The trains whizzed away and hurtled down the track in three different directions until the girl's train hit the finish line as the boys' followed less than a second after. The trio exchanged glances until Sebastian spoke up.

"How does a three-way tie sound?"

"Do we still get a prize?" the girl questioned, batting her eyelashes.

"Absolutely!" Sebastian beamed, sitting the boy back on the ground. "I was thinking we could eat…Cupcakes!" he grabbed a plastic container off the counter and popped open the lid, revealing perfectly frosted baked goods with the addition of sprinkles.

"Yay!" the children exclaimed, jumping with glee.

"Wait a minute. Cupcakes before _lunch_? That doesn't sound like a good idea to me," Sonja piped in, alerting them of her presence as she stepped through the doorway, Pride following close behind.

"Mommy!" the girl squealed, racing to leap and wrap her arms around her neck. Sonja, being nearly knocked over, braced herself as she regained balance. A warm smile spread across her lips.

"Hi, baby. Have you been a good girl for Uncle Sebastian?"

"Oh, yes. I've been having a great time!"

"Mama! Mama!" the little boy yelled with excitement, toddling over to her on his chubby legs. Sonja, with only one arm available, reached out and grabbed him to bring him in close before he could trip and hurt himself, burying her face in his short brown curls. She held her kids in her arms as Sebastian slammed the container shut and hid it behind his back.

"Sonja! Yeah, Vivian and Max have been really good kids for me. But as the for the cupcakes," he rocked on his heels as he cleared his throat, "I was _totally_ going to feed them lunch first, _obviously_ , because that's the responsible thing to do-''

"Don't worry about it, Sebastian," Sonja cut in with a soft laugh. "I know you meant well."

Sebastian caught a glimpse of Pride in the doorway and broke into a huge grin.

"Dwayne! So good to see you, man. The gang could really use your presence around here today."

"Hey there, Sebastian. It's good to see you too," the agent softly replied, a smile on his face.

"Oh my gosh! Uncle Dwayne!" Vivian cheered as she broke away from her mom and latched onto his leg.

"Dwayne, Dwayne!" Max giggled, rushing over to grab hold of the other available leg.

"Hi, kids. _Wow_ , have you guys gotten big since the last time I saw you! How old are ya now?" the retired agent patted each child on their head before he bent down to meet them eye to eye.

"I'm six years old," she smiled, twirling her long brown hair tied up in a ponytail. Her chocolate brown eyes were the very reflection of her mother.

"What about you, Max? Do you know how old you are?" Pride asked him.

The boy wrinkled his small nose and he exchanged glances between his mother and his sister for encouragement.

"Come on, honey. You know. Show Dwayne how old you are on your fingers," Sonja insisted, lifting his chubby hand for emphasis. Max's hazel eyes journeyed over his hand as he pushed each finger down, one by one, until he found the correct number and presented it to Pride.

"You're _two?_ " the agent delightedly chuckled. "I can't believe it. It feels like both you and your sister were born just yesterday."

"I agree with that. I can vividly remember when Sonja hit about eight months of pregnancy with Max, and LaSalle couldn't keep his head straight with worry that she was going to go into labor. He even started calling Patton my name, and me 'Patton!'" Sebastian laughed, absentmindedly rubbing the stubble on his chin.

"I remember," Sonja whispered, eyes downcast. "He probably called and texted me at least fifty times a day."

Sebastian, realizing he hit a sore spot, crossed his arms with a bite of his lip.

"Oh, I'm sorry Percy. I didn't mean to-"

"Where's Daddy?" Vivian spoke, returning to her mother's side. "Why isn't he at work?"

It took Sonja a moment to collect her thoughts as she tucked a stray hair behind her ear.

"He's on a work trip, baby. I told you before we came over here to see Uncle Sebastian."

"Why couldn't Sebastian come to our house? All our toys are there," the girl puzzled, taking Sonja's hand.

Sonja shut her eyes as she took in a deep breath.

"Listen, Vivian. You and your brother keep your mama busy at home every day, so all your family at NCIS wanted to give her a break so we could spend some time with you two," Pride interrupted with a gentle smile.

"You mean like a vacation?" she eagerly clapped, eyes aglow.

"That's _exactly_ what I mean. How about I add to the fun and make us all some yummy lunch? Are ya hungry?"

"Yes! Yes!" the children cried, hurriedly running over to the dining room table to clear off the train track in preparation for food.

Sonja pressed a hand to her heart and exhaled, making eye contact with Pride.

" _Thank you,"_ she mouthed.

Sebastian came over to Sonja to share a small word.

"Hey, uh- I just wanted to let you know we'll get you whatever you need. You know that, right? If you need someone to talk to don't be afraid to find me. We're all family here." Sebastian hesitantly placed a hand on her arm. "I didn't mean to make you upset earlier. That was my fault."

Sonja grasped his hand with a smile.

"Sebastian, I could never be mad at you. You've been an amazing friend to LaSalle and me for all these years and I'm so blessed you're in our lives. _I'm_ sorry if I never let you know that. As most are aware, I'm not the _best_ at sharing feelings."

"You and me both," he grinned. "Thanks, Sonja." He patted her hand as he left to rejoin the children.

Sonja discreetly met Pride in the kitchen as he was assembling ingredients for a specific dish.

"Before I throw anything on the stove, if I'm not mistaken, your kids aren't _vegan_ , are they?" it was posed as a serious question yet his eyes were playful.

"Oh no. LaSalle made damn sure of that," she scoffed, a hand on her hip. Pride's laugh bellowed throughout the room.

"That's what I thought. Just wanted to make sure so I didn't have their mama comin' after me."

Pride slid Sonja an apple as she stood by his side, silent, yet urgently tapping her foot. She wordlessly accepted the fruit, taking a large bite as she pondered. It was the first time she'd eaten all day.

"What do you think they want with him? Why do you think they took him?" she mumbled almost as if she were talking to herself.

"I'm sorry I can't answer that. Boy, I sure wish I knew."

"He's only had this job for two years, how many enemies could he have made? I just don't _understand,"_ she fumed. "Do you think this might have something to do with our past cases? Maybe even someone from Chris's detective days?"

"It's most certainly a possibility. I've been wracking my brain and throwing out ideas to everyone I can, but no one has got back to me with any new information," he replied heavy-heartedly as he lined up various spices for the meal.

"And what's so important about _today_? Why take him today and not yesterday, or last week?" Sonja continued, resting the back of the apple against her chin.

"That's what I plan on finding out. That may be the million dollar question to unlocking the answer to this whole thing."

Sonja averted her eyes and looked off in the distance with an intent stare, her brow becoming wrinkled. Pride could see her knuckles going white from the pressure she applied to the apple. He coughed in an attempt to gain her attention.

"Let me remind you, you don't have any form of clearance around here, if you _may_ be thinking of inserting yourself into situations which might land you in hot water with our FBI friends," Pride delicately muttered as he chopped up various vegetables, voice low to keep their conversation private.

"I know _that_ ," she huffed, her teeth ripping into the apple with frustration. "I haven't been an agent for six years. But my husband is the head of this team and he's _missing._ I can't just stand here and do nothing while some psycho could be lashing into him!"

"Don't talk like that, Sonja," he reprimanded. "You _are_ doing something. You're taking care of your children, answering any questions asked of you, boosting the moral of this team-"

"That's not enough."

The disconcerted stay-at-home mom tossed the fruit in the trash, and found a seat in one of the barstools her and LaSalle ate lunch in nearly every day as NCIS agents years ago.

He sighed, laying the knife down.

"Okay, let me ask you this- what do you _want_ to be doing?"

"Trying to find witnesses, for starters! Canvas the area for any clues. Check security cameras. Talk with LaSalle's team members- and that's just the _tip_ of the iceberg."

"You don't think the FBI and NCIS are doin' just that, right this very second?" Pride questioned, a brow raised.

"I'm sure they're doing _something_ like that! But I guarantee you I can do it twice as better." Sonja nearly shouted as her voice rose several levels, pounding a fist into the counter as her eyes swelled with tears.

Her reaction caused the children to look in her direction with curiosity before Sebastian drew their attention back with a card trick. Pride exhaled with relief before he spoke.

"I bet you could, Sonja. You were one of my best agents. But this time around is different, we both aren't on the team anymore and we _both_ have different priorities we got to stick to. Your emotional attachment to this case could get you in a big heap of trouble and I'm not going to stand by and watch that happen."

"But Dwayne," she choked. "This 'case' is _Christopher_. What happens if they don't find him? What am I supposed to tell our kids?"

Agent Pride reached out and took Sonja's hand into his own.

"You'll tell them their daddy is safe and he's coming home. _That's_ what you're going to tell them."

…

As the small group finished off their hearty bowl of stew around the dining room table, Sebastian pulled out his cellphone and typed a quick text.

"Hey everyone, sorry to be a party-pooper but my guy in the lab just sent me a text and says he needs me to come back in. We have a _bunch_ of important business to take care of." Sebastian intended the last bit of his announcement to be for the children, sending them a wink across the table. They covered their mouths with laughter.

"Alrighty then. If anything interesting happens, could you give me call? I'd love to know," Sonja smiled, though her intentions where crystal clear. Sebastian received the message with a stern nod.

"Will do. Okay, kids, give Uncle Sebastian a big hug!"

The children obliged his request by hopping out of their chairs and wrapping their arms around him as he stood. An audible sigh of contentment slipped passed their lips.

"I had so much fun with you guys. I should be back by the end of the day. In the meantime though," Sebastian glanced from Sonja to Pride, "Maybe you could hang out with Uncle Dwayne? He's pretty cool, right?"

"Yeah! He's the coolest," Vivian smiled. "If it's okay with Mama."

The children unlatched themselves from Sebastian and looked towards their mother, awaiting her answer. Sonja shrugged as she nudged agent Pride.

"It's fine with me if it's fine with him."

Pride couldn't hide his smile.

"Are you _kiddin'_ me? Of course I want to hang out with you guys. How does playing another game sound?"

"Yay! I love games. I'm so excited! This is the best day ever," Vivian grinned, grabbing ahold of her brother and rushing to retrieve more toys. Sebastian gave the adults a wave and exited the kitchen, his phone to his ear.

"The best day ever," Sonja mumbled with a sigh. Pride patted her leg.

"Now then, how about you get some coffee and take a break for a bit, huh? I've got the kids. Go take some time for yourself."

Sonja looked into her friends concerned eyes and decided that she didn't have the energy to argue, and accepted the offer. With the kid's busy rifling through a duffle bag of toys, Sonja poured herself a steaming cup of coffee and made a quiet exit from the room, finding herself back on the main floor with desks and monitors surrounding her.

In the six years Sonja had spent as a stay-at-home mom, she had only revisited her workplace at NCIS probably six times, once a year, for the annual Christmas party that took place there and afterwards at Pride's bar. Technically, seven, if she were to count her wedding day six years ago, when she and Chris felt a little reckless and took off during their reception to break into the headquarters and dance over every square inch. Sonja's heart warmed at the memory of their giggles and kisses and the way LaSalle would gather the train of her wedding dress as they attempted to make it up the stairs to the second floor. She hadn't realized that in her revelry, she had somehow made her way over to LaSalle's desk, the same in which Pride had occupied not so long ago. Her hand landed on one of the several picture frames scattered amongst paperwork and folders, as she slowly brought it towards her face. Sonja grinned, immediately recognizing the moment froze in time. It was a picture taken by a complete stranger one year ago on LaSalle's phone, depicting their time at the local zoo. It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon, and the sun shined perfectly on their happy faces. Sonja was standing to the left of LaSalle, her curly brown hair long and free as she sported a tank top and jean shorts. Her hand lay on the stroller containing baby Max, only one year old at the time. A slobbery smile was spread across his face as he held a stuffed monkey close to his chest. LaSalle, dressed in a t-shirt and jeans with a ball cap, had a grinning Vivian resting atop his shoulders. He had a hand wrapped around Vivian's leg, while his other arm settled on Sonja's waist. A second after the snapshot was taken, a bunch of balloons flew past the family and Vivian _insisted_ they run after them, prompting LaSalle to dump her off his shoulders and take her hand, flying through zoo like crazy people. Sonja was nearly crying with laughter as she pushed the stroller after them, begging them to slow down. She could remember the mischievous smile LaSalle flashed her as he and his daughter continued chasing the balloons until they eventually caught them near the reptile exhibit. Soon after that, the family proceeded to get their faces painted. Sonja was a tiger, LaSalle a lion, Vivian a zebra, and Max got a sloppy interpretation of a giraffe because he wouldn't sit still. Sonja pulled her phone out at the end of the day and took a picture of them on her front-facing camera. Sonja had a cheesy smile, LaSalle crossed his eyes, Vivian stuck out her tongue, and Max had his hands on his cheeks. That picture, to this day, was still the wallpaper on her phone. Though, checking her phone was no easy task, unless she briefly viewed her notifications or called LaSalle's number for the thousandth time which automatically went straight to voicemail. It was painful to look at the family photo and realize they might never go to the zoo again. It was painful to ponder the idea of LaSalle never being in their family again. The only reason Sonja ever decided to get married or have kids, or even so much as dip her toes into a new way of life was because of _him._ Nothing was possible without him. The only man in the world that she trusted and loved with every fiber of her being was gone, and she knew if she couldn't find him no one would.

 _ **7 years earlier…**_

"A little to the right. A little to the left. A little more. _There_. Right there. It's perfect, don't you think?"

"I _think_ my arms are about to fall off. Why do ya like this darn paintin' so much, anyway?"

LaSalle finished hanging the ginormous canvas on the wall and stepped off the ladder, wincing as he nursed his shoulder. Sonja whacked him on his back.

" _Excuse me_? Meredith Brody gave this to us as a housewarming gift! I'm sure as hell going to hang it up."

" _You're_ goin' to hang it up? What have I been doin' for the past thirty minutes then?"

"You've been doing everything except making me a drink," she teased, planting a kiss on his cheek. LaSalle let out a sigh and shook his head, patting her on the butt.

"Who knew movin' into a new house was so stressful!"

"Really? You thought it'd be easy?"

"Gosh, I don't know, Percy. It's not like I've ever bought a house with a woman before," he grinned, meandering passed boxes to reach the liquor cabinet. Sonja rolled her eyes with a smile.

"Why, exactly, did I agree to do this again?"

"Because ya love me," he winked, holding up a bottle of rum and vodka in each hand. "What are ya thinkin'? I've only unpacked these two so far."

"A rum and coke will be fine. Do you want to get take-out or find something to make here later? I have no idea what to do for dinner," Sonja replied, stacking boxes in the dining room.

"Uh, what about just stayin' home and findin' somethin'? I'm pretty sure I saw some pasta floatin' around here not too long ago!"

"Okay," she laughed. "Then pasta it is."

LaSalle found his way back through the kitchen and handed her the drink, standing back with his hands on his hips to admire their work.

"By tomorrow I think this place could be lookin' pretty damn good!"

"Yeah, maybe by tomorrow _night._ I thought we agreed to sell some of our junk that neither of us need anymore? Why does one man need five boxes labeled 'high school'?"

"Hey now, I was a stud in high school, and I got plenty of trophies and memorabilia to show for it," he refuted, scooping up a ball of bubble wrap and tossing it at her with a huge grin.

Sonja chose wrapping paper as her weapon and threw a heaping pile of it on top of his head, narrowly escaping spilling her drink.

"Whatever you say, babe, but don't be surprised if you look through our attic years from now and only find _one_ box left," she smirked, her eyes playful.

"Now, what kinda thing is _that_ to say?" he mused, his voice husky. LaSalle wound an arm around her waist and pulled her into him until they were chest to chest. "It's okay though. I'd rather let go of anythin' in the world but you."

"You've always been such a softie," she whispered, placing her palm on the back of his neck. "That may be my favorite thing about you."

"Really? I coulda _sworn_ we were in bed the other day, and you told me your favorite thing was when I-''

Sonja pressed a finger to his lips.

"You're really great at ruining the moment too," she sighed, suppressing a giggle. Sonja kissed him on the nose and slipped her glass into his hand. "I'll take another one of these, if you don't mind."

"Not at all. What are ya thinkin' of unpackin' next? I can track down all our kitchen supplies if ya want." LaSalle bent down to sweep their trash to the side to make a path.

"Yeah, that's a good idea. I was thinking I might take a quick shower before we start dinner." Sonja looked down at her wardrobe and cringed. "This sweatshirt is disgusting and these jeans have seen better days."

"Oh, come on. So what if movin' in gets us a little dirty? I think ya look beautiful."

"You're _supposed_ to think that, goofball."

"What about your drink? Should I make it and bring it upstairs to ya?"

"No, that's okay. Just keep working on the kitchen and I'll be back soon."

"You got it," he smiled, using a spatula to wave goodbye.

When Sonja deemed herself clean, and comfortably clad in a pair of leggings and a simple cotton dress, she made her way down her newly carpeted staircase and found LaSalle lounging on the couch watching a show on their flat-screen TV.

"Hey! I thought we agreed you would work on the kitchen while I was in the shower, _not_ testing out our couch," she exclaimed, approaching the living room with her arms crossed. LaSalle craned his neck to flash her his million watt smile. Sonja raised a brow.

"Now Darlin', if ya would have just took a moment instead of gettin' on my case, ya would have noticed the kitchen is unpacked and ready to go! Take a look, won't ya?"

Sonja disbelievingly flipped around and gasped at the sight. There were no longer cardboard boxes strewn throughout the space, and every appliance and decoration was set up to perfection. For that matter, after taking in the rest of first floor, there were absolutely _zero_ boxes to be found. The living room, dining room, and kitchen were spotless and tastefully arranged. The carpet appeared freshly vacuumed and the hardwood floors swept, nearly sparkling.

"Christopher," she mumbled, stunned. "How in the hell did you do this all by yourself?"

"Well…" he coughed, clearing his throat as he stood. Sonja was once again taken aback, as she noticed he somehow miraculously had time to change his clothes as well. When she had left to take a shower he was wearing a t-shirt and shorts. Now, his attire consisted of a good pair of jeans and one of his Henley long-sleeved shirts. He ran his fingers through his hair, his cheeks slightly flushing.

"What are you wearing? LaSalle, what's going on? You _know_ I hate surprises-''

" _Surprise!"_ came a loud cheer that reverberated throughout the house. Sonja held her heart in shock as Pride, Sebastian, Patton, Gregorio, Loretta, and Brody popped out from behind a wall that had been concealing their presence. They all laughed at Sonja's reaction as many of them placed containers and platters of food on the dining room table.

"As you can see, I had a _lot_ of help gettin' this house together," LaSalle grinned, making his way over to Sonja, planting a kiss on her cheek. "I couldn't have done this without them. Thank you all."

"I wanted to help spruce up the second floor but LaSalle _adamantly_ wanted me to leave that up to you, being the lady of the house and all," Gregorio smirked, sticking her hands in her pockets. Sonja felt her heart warm at her friend's sentiment. Out of all the people in the world, she never thought her and Tammy would have grown as close they did. After she decided to transfer from the FBI to NCIS, the team felt good again. _Whole_ again. Everything had changed for the better.

"You guys planned a housewarming party without me? How is that even possible?" Sonja laughed, crossing the room to embrace each guest in a hug.

"Boy, it _sure_ wasn't easy," Pride chuckled.

"It wasn't easy for me either, you know," Sebastian piped in. "Do you know how hard it is for me to keep a secret that long?"

"Oh, believe me! We _know_ , Sebastian," Loretta sighed.

"Meri, I'm so glad you could make it," Sonja smiled, taking the hand of her ex-team member. "How long will you be in town?"

"Not very," she solemnly replied, though eyes bright. "I figured I might stick around a day or two to catch up with everyone. Work keeps me busy, but I wouldn't miss this for the world. I _love_ that painting, by the way." Sonja grinned at her acknowledgement.

"You guys really found a nice place. It definitely suits you two," Patton congratulated. "If you need me to hook up a sound system or anything like that, just give me a holler."

"Thanks Patton, we sure will," LaSalle nodded.

"Well, can we get you guys something to drink? I see we don't need to make anything to eat," Sonja sent a faux scowl to LaSalle. "Definitely don't need to find that box of pasta."

"Would ya mind lookin' in the liquor cabinet for a bottle of whiskey, honey? I swore I bought one the other day and I wanted the boys to try it out," LaSalle sweetly asked, as the others looked on.

"If it's your whiskey, why don't _you_ want to look for it?" Sonja replied, although she was already halfway to the cabinet.

"I know I'm bein' a pain, just take a look, would ya please?"

"Okay," she shrugged, opening the door to search for the desired alcohol. "I don't see any whiskey in here LaSalle!" she called, rifling through various bottles and mixes. "Should I bring something else over?"

When there came no response, Sonja became agitated and slammed the door shut.

"Listen, I don't know what you're trying to do here but-''

The words fell off her tongue the minute she turned back to the group of friends and saw LaSalle halfway in-between the living room and dining room, down on one knee, with a black box in his hand. The house was quiet as Brody was already wiping away a stray tear, and as Sebastian pulled out a video camera and began recording.

"LaSalle…" Sonja whispered, her feet glued to the floor.

"You kinda look like you're frozen," he chuckled. "Should I come over to _you_ , then?"

When there came no response, LaSalle gathered himself off the floor and took four whole strides before he was in front of her, and took her hand without hesitation. Kneeling, he looked up at Sonja's beautiful, yet shocked face.

"So," he began, taking a deep breath. "I've rehearsed this in my head probably a thousand times, and I still don't know where to start."

"Anywhere. Start anywhere." Sonja's voice was gentle yet sure as she gripped his hand in her own.

"We've only been datin' each other for almost two years now, but I've known ya a couple years longer than that," he began. "And it's safe to say you're the greatest friend I've ever known. It seems strange to be down on one knee, proposin' to ya, while talkin' about bein' friends- but that's where everythin' started for us. City Mouse and Country Mouse," he smiled, beginning to get teary-eyed. "Our relationship has been a dog-gone roller coaster. We've had our ups and downs, our fair share of fights and laughs. But as partner's go, you're the absolute best. As friends go, there's no comparison. As girlfriends go, I'm hopin' you'll be my last. I've discovered after spendin' so many missions with you and nearly losin' you a few times, there really _is_ no me without you. The first time we ever hugged, the night you diffused the riverboat bomb, I felt a sense of peacefulness with you in my arms. It felt like I was home. There's no one else I would rather take on life with, than you. I know ya got my back, and I promise I got yours. Because of you, I'm the man I always wanted to be, the man I always had the potential to be. You changed everythin' for me. I love you, Sonja Percy, and it would make me the happiest man in the world if ya would do me the honor of bein' my wife."

LaSalle released Sonja's hand to open the tiny black box, which exposed a fourteen karat white gold, round-cut diamond engagement ring. LaSalle glanced down at the ring and grinned, beaming back up at her with glossy eyes.

"What do ya think? Will you marry me?" he whispered, as if it were only the two of them.

"You are unbelievable," Sonja replied, wiping her eyes with the back of hand. "I don't even know what to say."

"A 'yes', would be nice," he laughed, taking her hand once more.

" _Yes_ ," she smiled. "Yes, I'll marry you, LaSalle."

LaSalle swiftly removed the ring from the box and slid it onto her ring finger, revealing a perfect fit. The couple emitted a sigh as he rose to his feet and met her lips in a kiss, Sonja's arms looping around his neck. The group of on-lookers began cheering once more. As their lips departed from one another, Sonja brought him close into a hug.

"I love the ring. I love you," she whispered, lifting her hand to admire the rock.

"I'm glad, I love you too."

"Thank God that's over, because if I had to go one more day with _this_ secret, I would go insane," Sebastian exclaimed, stowing away the video camera.

"Really, dude?" Patton rolled his eyes. "This ain't about you!"

"Congratulations, you two," Gregorio winked as she patted them. "I knew you were made for each other."

"Thanks, Tammy," Sonja replied, as she and LaSalle turned to face the group.

"Watching that moment was definitely worth flying out here for," Brody sniffled, gazing from one friend to another. "I'm so happy for you."

"I think we should propose a toast," Pride announced, popping open a bottle of champagne. Loretta handed everyone a glass as Pride worked his way around the room, filling each vessel to the brim. Pride then filled his own glass and raised it high as each person followed suit. He cleared his throat before speaking.

"Cheers to Christopher and Sonja. May married life be all you want it to be, and may there be more good days than bad. Congratulations. We love you guys."

" _Cheers!"_ came the jubilant response, as glasses clinked. The room erupted in conversation and giggles as Loretta took the opportunity to unveil all the food on the dining room table.

"Meredith, would you be a dear and help me set out the plates and silverware? I think it's about time for dinner."

"Of course," Brody smiled, gathering up the needed supplies.

Sonja found herself departing from the festivities as she journeyed towards the window in the living room, as she gazed outside, the fall leaves swirling down the street.

"Where are ya runnin' off to?" a deep, southern voice inquired, as a pair of strong arms wrapped themselves around her torso. LaSalle laid his chin on her shoulder.

"I'm not running anywhere," she replied, a smile spreading across her lips. "I'm standing still admiring where I am."

"This neighborhood is perfect for raisin' kids in, don't ya think?"

"Why, Christopher LaSalle, I haven't even put on a wedding dress and you're asking me about _kids_?"

"I'm not askin' anythin', it's just a thought," he shrugged, a low chuckle emitting from his throat.

Sonja was silent as they watched cars drive by and families play in their front yards. She sighed.

"I wish I could stay in this moment forever," she mumbled, snuggling against her new fiancée. "I don't ever want this feeling to end."

LaSalle nuzzled into her cheek, his breath hot on her neck.

"Me too, Percy. Me too."

…

"Sonja. Hey, there. Are you awake?"

"What- _huh_?" came her groggy response, as she shot upward and sat straight as a board. Sonja felt a dampness near her mouth and discreetly wiped away drool on the back of her hand.

"I'm sorry to have woken you," Pride gently smiled. "I saw you take a seat at Christopher's desk about an hour ago and the next second you were asleep."

"Oh. I did?" Sonja puzzled, suddenly becoming aware of her surroundings. She still had the picture from the zoo in her hand, yet she had somehow got lost in thought and sat down in a chair. Her husband's chair. "Did you say I've been asleep for an hour?"

"Oh no, it's been about three hours now. It's not getting late or anything, it's a little after four o'clock, but Max has been asking for ya. After that, I need to talk to you for a second-"

"He has? Is something wrong?" Sonja jumped to her feet and took off in the direction of the kitchen, when Pride abruptly grabbed her arm.

"Nothing is wrong, Sonja," he replied, his brow furrowed with worry. "Are _you_ doing okay? You seem a little…off."

"I'm okay," she whispered, nodding reluctantly. "Just had a bad dream."

Pride let Sonja go, as she jogged to the kitchen, and found Max in the arms of a woman who appeared to be attempting to soothe him by humming off-key and patting his behind. Sonja smiled the moment she recognized her.

"Tammy. What are you doing down here? The FBI is done with their questions?"

"Oh yeah," came her gravelly voice, with a roll of her eyes. "I was done hours ago. Being the veteran on the team gets me certain perks."

Gregorio closed the distance between them and transferred the cranky toddler into his mother's arms. Max let out a sob and buried his face into Sonja's chest.

"What's wrong, baby? Are you tired?" she cooed, softly rubbing his back.

"I got down here about thirty minutes ago and Pride was doing everything to get the kid to calm down, and I mean _everything,_ " Gregorio sighed.

"Where's Vivian?"

"Right here," Pride announced, walking the little girl into the room by the hand. "She had to use the bathroom."

"Mommy," she groaned. "I'm hungry. I want to go home. I'm tired of being here."

"Okay, sweetheart. I can get you something to eat," Sonja smiled, though anxiety was mounting.

"I want our food at home. Can we go home please?" Vivian begged, her eyes sad.

"You know what?" Pride began, bending down to meet her at eye level, "I forgot to tell you that you and your family are gonna spend the night at my house tonight! Does that sound fun?"

"A _sleepover?_ Mommy didn't tell me were having a sleepover!"

"I'm sorry, Viv. I guess I forgot," Sonja apologized, yet concealing her confusion at the new information. Pride picked up on her emotions immediately.

"It was a last minute thing," he smiled. "I thought it might be a good idea while your Daddy is away."

"When is Daddy coming home? I miss him," Vivian inquired, her demeanor becoming saddened once more.

"Daddy, Daddy," Max cried, finally uttering a word.

"That's why he's been upset?" Gregorio frowned, running a hand through her hair.

"Yeah," Sonja replied. "He's a Daddy's boy. Sometimes Chris has to come home during work just to put him down for a nap."

"I love when Daddy reads me stories before I go to bed. I wish he were here tonight to read me a story," the little girl sighed.

"Don't worry, honey. I can read you a story," Sonja smiled comfortingly.

"You don't read them like Daddy does," she sulked. "Daddy always makes funny faces and talks in funny voices."

"I can give it a shot," Pride interjected, proving his point by producing a hilarious expression. His act got a laugh out of everyone in the room.

"Is Daddy coming home tomorrow then?" Vivian continued, unwilling to let go of the subject. "We can go home tomorrow and see him, right?"

Sonja blinked, her mouth going dry.

"We hope so," Pride nodded. "We miss him too."

Vivian, deciding that was a reasonable answer, put on her jacket and began gathering her toys.

"Is it time to go to Uncle Dwayne's house now? I'm _really_ hungry."

"Sure, kiddo. How about I get you and your brother in your car seats, hm?" Gregorio replied, nudging the little girl with a sly smile.

"What? Are you sure?" Sonja perplexedly handed Gregorio the keys to her car.

"Mhm. You and Pride get everything situated here and we'll meet you outside."

"Sounds like a plan," he nodded, placing a hand on Sonja's back.

Reluctantly, Sonja handed a displeased Max to Gregorio, who ended up satisfied after she pulled out her cell phone and let him play some games. Vivian followed the pair until they were out of sight.

Sonja wasted no time in flipping around with wide eyes.

"What's going on? Is there news on LaSalle?"

"Hold on, hold on. Don't get too excited yet, I'm just the messenger. I tried to tell you earlier."

"Messenger of _what_ , Dwayne? What did they find?"

"It's not a question of what, but of _who_ ," a voice chimed, bringing the attention of the agents to the main floor.

"Sebastian?" Sonja called, hurrying to meet him in the middle of the room. "I don't have time for your riddles, I just need good news."

"Well, we haven't had any concrete evidence yet. Traffic cams and security cams have all came back with no information."

"Okay, what about any witnesses? Did you guys find a witness?"

"No," he replied with a shake of his head. "No witnesses to be found."

"Then _what?_ " Sonja exclaimed, her patience wearing thin.

"The FBI is keeping us in the dark about most things, and I practically had to _twist_ the director's arm to get any sort of news out of him. So-''

" _So?"_

"I took matters into my own, very capable hands," Sebastian responded, retrieving his tablet and pulling up several pages for Sonja to comb through.

"I spent most of the afternoon delving into LaSalle's NOPD past, which came up empty. No red flags or anything suspicious. However, when I looked into his NCIS case files, I found a few things that may help us out." Sebastian used his finger to flip to a page of names.

"These are guys that LaSalle has either arrested himself or had a hand in arresting from the year 2014 until now. All of them are still incarcerated in the state of New Orleans."

"Okay, but there's nearly fifty names here. How is this helpful?"

Sebastian smiled with a flick of his finger.

" _These_ are guys that have got out of prison on parole in the past month," Sebastian's fingers flew across the screen again, "And _these_ are guys that have recently escaped and are currently wanted."

"Alright. Five guys. I can work with this," Sonja mumbled, confiscating the tablet to inspect the mug shots.

Sebastian eagerly waited for a response.

"I don't remember any of these guys. I don't know why any of them would want to hurt LaSalle," she puzzled, gazing intently at the screen. "Most of these guys were booked on drug charges or accessory to a crime, not _murder_ or anything."

"Okay," he nodded, reclaiming the device. "I have _one_ more option here, but I gotta warn you, it's a strange one."

"Strange how?"

"You and LaSalle worked many an undercover operation if I'm correct, and the file says this case goes back probably a decade ago, I don't know if you'll even remember it."

"A _decade_ ago? What's the case file?"

"Here it is," he nodded, pulling the information up on the screen. "It looks like it took place in New York City. Something regarding a stolen painting and the murder of a Petty Officer."

Sonja's mind began to melt as she slowly connected the dots, agonizingly, one by one.

"It says here you were undercover as a 'Mr. and Mrs. Matthews', if that rings a bell," Sebastian continued, unbeknownst to Sonja's anguish.

Pride, realizing Sonja had gone cold, stepped up and took the tablet under examination.

"Ah, I remember this case. It was one of the craziest ones we've ever come across, but it had a happy ending. What does this have to do with LaSalle's disappearance, Sebastian?"

"Well, it has do with the man that was arrested that day. Unlike all the other men on the list that are situated in New Orleans, he still happens to be imprisoned in New York. At least, he _was-''_

"What do you mean _'was'_?" Sonja erupted, startling both the men.

"I mean," Sebastian gulped, "That he isn't there anymore. He escaped from prison a week ago."

Pride gazed at the mug shot spread across the screen and somberly handed it to Sonja, whose teeth were biting a hole into her lip as the remaining hope in her world came crumbling down.

"Do you know this guy, Sonja?" came Sebastian's timid voice. "Do you think he'd hurt LaSalle?"

"Is this the guy we need to be looking for?" Pride inquired, eyes intent.

It seemed as if years passed in the span of thirty seconds before Sonja ripped her eyes away from the picture of his face, sat the tablet on a desk, and addressed the concerned faces of her friends who were waiting on an answer.

"His name is Lawrence Livingston. And I promise you, he's going to kill him."

 _ **To be continued…**_

 **Post A/N:** Wow! What an intense first chapter. I'm excited to hear what you guys think. Who will find LaSalle first- the FBI, NCIS, or Sonja? Or is there even a chance he could still be alive with Lawrence Livingston possibly being in town? Look forward to more flashbacks, suspense, family fun, and clues to the biggest mystery of all: _**Where is Lasalle?**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters affiliated with the T.V program NCIS: New Orleans.**

 **Please Review!**

…

 _ **6 years earlier…**_

Sonja clutched the monitor against her heart in dismay as she sat up in bed for the thousandth time that night.

"What am I doing wrong?" she mumbled to herself, the cries of her newborn baby girl ringing loudly from the devices' speakers. As she sat the monitor on her bedside table, she intently watched the screen as Vivian tossed and turned restlessly. The sound of a deep grumble startled her, causing Sonja to jolt backward and hit her head on the bedpost. She grasped her skull with a frown.

"Is our lil' firecracker awake again?" Christopher LaSalle inquired, scooting closer to his disconcerted wife. His brown hair was disheveled and eyes weary as he stretched, the downy comforter and blankets falling away from his bare chest.

"I don't think she ever went to sleep," she scoffed, massaging the back of her head. "I'll go check on her."

"Nah."

Sonja felt a gentle tug of her arm.

" _I'll_ check up on Miss. Vivian LaSalle. Maybe she needs to spend some time with her daddy."

"Are you sure? What if she's hungry?"

LaSalle chuckled as he crawled out of bed and slipped on an old t-shirt.

"We know where to find ya. Try and get some rest, okay?"

Sonja muttered in protest as her husband placed a kiss on her cheek and exited their bedroom with a wide grin. He never had to work hard at getting his way.

Within a few seconds, LaSalle was strolling into Vivian's room and up to her crib as Sonja was glued to the monitors screen in anticipation. She couldn't make out the quiet conversation between him and his daughter, as LaSalle delicately lifted the baby into his arms and held her close like a fragile doll. He paced back and forth in the nursery for a while, patting Vivian's bottom as he did so. The cries from the baby died down to sniffling, as LaSalle retrieved a blanket from the rocking chair and made his way out the door. Sonja raised a brow.

Ten minutes passed before she became anxious of their whereabouts and hopped out of bed, flipping on a lamp to locate her warm cardigan. The soft material embraced her body as she covered her feet in slippers. Wasting no time swooping out the door and into the hall, she gasped as she nearly knocked over her husband and their sleepy baby.

"Sonja? Where in the heck are ya runnin' to?" he whispered, sweeping away a stray hair from her eye that had fallen in the chaos.

"I didn't know where you guys went! I was worried," she replied, her tone defensive, as she ran the back of her hand across Vivian's cheek.

"We went for a walk," he smiled, eyes dropping to his daughters face. "We had a lot to talk about."

" _Christopher!"_ Sonja hissed. "You actually left the house?"

"Of course not. Sweetheart, why on earth would I take our newborn baby outside the house if I didn't absolutely have to?" he shook his head with a soft laugh. "We just went downstairs. That's all."

"Oh." Sonja crossed her arms and felt her cheeks burning red with embarrassment. "I'm sorry. I'm a bit of a basket-case nowadays…"

"No. You're just gettin' used to bein' a mama."

He held the baby in one arm and used his other to wrap around Sonja and coax her back down the hall and into their room.

"Chris? Why aren't we taking her to her room?"

"I think what Vivian needs right now is _both_ of her parents," he grinned. "Since spendin' one-on-one time with us isn't cuttin' it."

The family made their way into the room as Sonja quickly dimmed the light from lamp before it upset the baby.

"I read in a parenting magazine we shouldn't enable behavior like this," she stated, voice unsure. "Isn't she supposed to learn how to be 'self-sufficient' or 'independent'? Or- _something_ like that?"

"Is it the same magazine that said we should make sock puppets to express our feelin's properly?"

Sonja glared. " _Chris."_

"I suppose I get what you're sayin'," he nodded reluctantly. "But I figure we can work on that another day. How about we all just settle down and get in bed for a while?"

"What do you mean? Go to sleep?"

"No, I mean we can snuggle or cuddle or whatever we want," he laughed. "I think Vivian would like that. I think she might be lonely."

"Lonely?" Sonja felt the edge of her mouth roll into a smile. "You sure you aren't making excuses because you don't want to put her down yet?"

"Am I that easy to figure out?" he grinned, beaming down at the baby in his arms.

"Most of the time," she shrugged, leaning forward and pressing her lips onto his neck. "Come on, then."

Sonja removed her cardigan and slippers and slid under the covers, pulling the blankets back to make room for the others. LaSalle handed her the baby blanket draped across his shoulder and slowly climbed into bed, Vivian cradled in one arm. Once they were secure, LaSalle switched Vivian into his other arm, leaving her contentedly sandwiched between her parents. For the first time that night, her face appeared serene, and her breathing slow.

"That's my girl," LaSalle cooed, brushing his finger along Vivian's caramel skin.

Sonja emitted a giggle before she could catch herself, causing LaSalle to redirect his attention.

"What's got ya gigglin'?" he puzzled.

"I cannot even count how many times you've told me that."

He paused for a moment to piece together what she meant, and when realization struck, his eyes softened as he stared at her with a tender gaze as he did so often.

"Yeah, you're right. I'm sorry, I just can't help it!" LaSalle placed Vivian in Sonja's arms so he could wrap an arm around them both, and gather his wife closer to him, nuzzling into her hair. "I'm so darn proud of you. I'm proud of both my girls."

Sonja laid her head on his shoulder with a sigh. "We'll miss you when you go back to work."

"NCIS won't be the same without ya. Not to mention the fact that I have a new partner!" LaSalle shook his head disappointedly.

"Hey, your partner is Tammy Gregorio. Can't get much better than that!"

"I know. We're gettin' a new trainee who's joinin' the team soon, and that's gonna be interestin' to say the least."

"Don't be so sad, okay? You act like we're breaking up or something." Sonja attempted to conceal her laughter at LaSalle's behavior.

"Well we kinda _are_ , aren't we?" he smirked. "City Mouse and Country Mouse are fightin' crime together, no more! The end of a legacy."

"Now we're fighting dirty diapers and sleepless nights," she grinned. "It's a whole new adventure."

He paused, softly rubbing her cheek with his thumb.

"You didn't have to quit, ya know?" he whispered. "We could have tried to make it work."

"You're kidding, right? I wouldn't leave this baby girl alone with anyone in the world but me or you."

"I had a feelin' you would say that," he smiled. "I just feel bad you had to give up everythin' ya worked so hard for. That job was everythin' to you, Sonja."

She took ahold of his hand and pressed it against her own that was cradling the sleeping Vivian.

" _This_ is everything to me. I would give up anything just to have this for the rest of my life. So don't be sad for me, okay? This is all I've ever wanted."

"Okay then," he nodded, kissing her forehead. "How'd I ever get so lucky?"

"I was crazy enough to move in with you, marry you, and have a kid with you, I guess," she winked, nudging him with her elbow.

His smile widened as the look in his eye grew bright.

"Yeah. I guess you were."

…

The obnoxious sound of a cellphone ringing jarred Sonja from her slumber, causing her to nearly roll off the couch she was awkwardly positioned.

" _Shit,"_ she muttered, fumbling with the device on the coffee table, until it was safely in her grasp. Hastily bringing it to her ear, she swiped the screen to answer.

"Hello? Chris, is it you?"

"Sonja? This is Meri," the concerned voice answered. "I'm sorry if I woke you, our time difference is a bit off. I just got the news about LaSalle not long ago. God, I'm so sorry."

Sonja sighed, her heart dropping into her stomach. Sitting up, she reacquainted herself with her surroundings before replying to her friend and ex-coworker. She remembered she had fallen asleep on the couch in Pride's living room after a quick dinner with him and the children. The trio played several games while Sonja watched on, quietly drinking a glass of wine while holding her phone in a death grip, waiting for the call that would change her nightmare into a dream. After getting the children settled in the guest room, Sonja bid Pride goodnight and laid on the couch for what seemed like hours until she passed out from exhaustion. Now, checking the clock on the wall, she saw it was nearly five o'clock in the morning. She groaned, rubbing her swollen eyes.

"Hi, Meri. It's no problem, I wasn't really asleep anyway," she replied. "And thank you for calling. I appreciate it. How did you find out what happened?"

"Gregorio called me a couple hours ago. Pride texted me yesterday afternoon and asked me to find a time to call him about something, but work had my hands tied. When Tammy filled me in I couldn't believe it! Are there any leads? Any new information?"

"No, not that I know of," Sonja shook her head. "We can't find any evidence to show us where he might have went. Sebastian may have a lead though."

"Really? What is it?"

"We think Chris's disappearance has something to do with a past case of his- a past case of _mine_ too, actually," Sonja began. "Do you remember the undercover operation he and I did about a decade ago involving the Livingston family and a stolen painting? Amber Matthews? Any of that ring a bell?"

"Hm…Yes. I think so. Oh my God, you stayed at the guys' house didn't you? Didn't he torture LaSalle?"

"Yes. That's the case. Apparently Lawrence Livingston escaped from prison in New York a week ago and his whereabouts are unknown."

"This has to be related Sonja," Brody exclaimed. "How else can they explain an agent disappearing like that? It's too much of a coincidence. He must have LaSalle."

"I know," Sonja whispered. "That's what I'm worried about."

"How long has he been reported missing?"

"Almost twenty-four hours now."

"Damn it," Brody mumbled underneath her breath. "Time is so crucial…"

"I agree. I'm about to get up and get dressed and see if Sebastian has made any progress over night. If anything major happens Pride or I will let you know!"

"Don't worry about me, Sonja. Just let NCIS and the FBI do their job and get LaSalle back- and _promise_ me you won't get yourself into trouble throughout this process. You getting detained or arrested for interference with the case would make matters much worse."

"Boy, you and Pride sure sound like a broken record," Sonja light-heartedly scoffed, her chin resting upon her knuckles.

"Do you blame us?" she laughed. "Promise me you'll be safe, okay?"

"I promise."

"Good. How are the kids? Should I fly down and watch after them?"

"They're doing alright. Better than I thought they would. Most of the gang is taking turns babysitting them so I think we're good in that department! If anything changes I'll give you a call."

"Sure, whatever you need I'll be there."

Sonja's ears perked up at the sound of bare feet quietly shuffling along the wood floor until Pride appeared from the hallway, clad in jeans and his usual dress shirt. He smoothed his unkempt hair with a groggy smile as he sent her a pleasant wave. Sonja acknowledged him with a grin.

"Okay, I better let you go so I can get the day started. Thank you so much for calling, Meri."

"You're welcome. Be well."

Sonja hung up the phone as Pride maneuvered passed furniture and other obstacles until he seated himself next to her on the couch, eyes inquisitive.

"What are ya doing talking on the phone at this hour, Sonja? You should be getting some rest."

"I was," she lied, running her hands up and down her arms. "Meri didn't know what time it was. She wanted to call me as soon as she found out about Chris."

"I never got the chance to fill her in. Who told her?"

"Tammy."

"Oh. I see," he nodded. "She must have been upset."

"Just as upset as everyone else."

"Well," he coughed, rising to his feet, "I was just about to make some breakfast if you'd care to join me? It doesn't look like either of us are much for sleep right now."

"Sounds perfect," she smiled. "I'll wait to get the kids up a little later. We all have a big day ahead of us."

"We sure do."

…

"Mommy! Max spilled his apple juice and his pancake went on the floor," Vivian remarked, brushing her hair away from her face, legs swinging from the chair seated at the dining room table.

Max, giving an admonishing glare to his older sister, slammed his hands on the tray of his highchair.

"Viv! You be mean to me!" he reached out in an attempt to yank at her shirt, but Vivian anticipated his move, slyly leaning away with a grin.

"Okay, that's enough. You two have been nothing but trouble this morning," Sonja snapped, bending down to retrieve the empty cup and the sticky flapjack off the hardwood.

"What's goin' on? Do I need to grab some paper towels?" Pride piped in, abandoning the remaining food on the stove.

"I think we're going to need a mop," she sighed, examining the pool of fruit juice. "I'm sorry Dwayne, I don't know what's gotten into them!"

"Oh gee, Sonja, they're just youngsters. It's no big deal," he smiled. "Nothing that can't be cleaned."

"I know. Everything just feels strange when Chris isn't around."

"Mom! Your phone is ringing," Vivian chirped, pointing to the device that lay across the room on the couch. "Maybe it's Daddy!"

"Uh," Sonja exchanged glances between the mess on the floor, and the man who stood beside her. "Do you mind if I-''

"This can wait, Sonja. You better go get that phone!"

"Right," she nodded, dashing into the living room, the forgotten sippy cup tumbling from her grasp.

Before another second elapsed and the call possibly going to voicemail, Sonja pressed _'Answer'_ and slammed the phone to her ear.

"Hello? Who is it?"

Pride quietly observed as he drug a mop through the situation on the dining room floor.

"Yes Sebastian, I can do that," she replied, earnestly nodding as she paced. "I can be there in ten minutes. Let me figure out what to do with the kids."

"What's happening?" Pride questioned, laying the handle of the mop against the wall.

"Ok great. See you soon." Sonja hung up the phone and took a deep breath.

"Are you just gonna leave me in suspense? What's the news, Sonja?"

"There's no time to explain, but Sebastian found some new information on Livingston that could be helpful. He wants me to come down to the lab so we can talk."

"How do you suppose you'll get in there? You're just a civilian. Can he get you a pass?"

"No," she sighed. "He said we can't meet at headquarters because things have become 'complicated', but he'll tell me more when I come down. He says he's going to try and make up a story that I'm going to start as an intern in a few weeks, and want a tour of the areas I'll be working in."

Pride raised a brow. "You can't be serious! And what's this 'complicated' thing to do with headquarters? Sometimes the man makes no sense."

"I'm serious alright," Sonja wound through the kitchen until she and her former boss came face to face. "If this news on Livingston checks out, we can find Chris _today_ ," her voice fell to a whisper as the children looked on, eyes curious. "It's already been over twenty-four hours, Pride. He doesn't have much time left and you know it."

"Believe me, I know," he replied, voice intent. "I've been there. I just don't want to see you get on the wrong side of the law when NCIS and the FBI are doing all they can to bring Christopher home. They have all the resources they need to get the job done, I'm tellin' you Sonja. Sebastian is just going to get you strung out," Pride placed his hands on his hips, eyes skyward. "You two shouldn't even be _discussing_ the case, might I add…"

"If he thought those guys were doing enough he wouldn't have just called me right now," Sonja remarked, poking the man in the chest. " _Besides,_ who around here knows Livingston better than me?"

Pride brought his gaze to her own, lips pressed into a thin line.

"The people at NCIS and the FBI are really good agents, I'm not discounting that," she continued, voice still low to conceal the conversation. "But do any of them know Lawrence Livingston? Do they know what he is and what he does?"

"Sonja-''

"No, Pride. _Listen_ to me. I'm an asset to this case whether anyone wants to admit that or not. Chris has a better chance at survival if I'm the one answering questions. Facts are facts."

"Fact is, you might get caught," he sighed, shoulders slumping. "I know the agent in you wants to do this, I do. I just don't think you getting sent to prison would be worth it."

"Yes, the agent in me but more importantly, the _wife_ ," she nearly exclaimed, almost unable to contain composure. "And the mother who wants her children to grow up with a father. Do you hear me, Pride? I have to do this. I have to go forward. I understand your concerns because I feel them to, but _please_ , let me go. If it were my life on the line, LaSalle would do the same."

Pride paused for a moment as he weighed options, Sonja's eyes glistened with tears.

"Okay," he replied, a reassuring smile finally breaking. "Do what you gotta do. I have your back."

"Thank you," she whispered, quickly kissing him on the cheek.

"What's happening, Mom? Are you okay?" Vivian asked, leaving her seat at the table.

Sonja reached out and took her daughter by the shoulders, the soft cotton of Vivian's dress brushed against her fingertips.

"I'm okay, sweetheart. I need to go visit Uncle Sebastian for a while. What do you think about staying here with Dwayne and your brother? You guys can play games or do anything you want!"

"We sure can. I was even thinking about a trip to the park! How does that sound?" Pride jumped in, voice as jubilant as one could muster.

"That sounds good," Vivian muttered, eyes downcast. "I wish you could come with us Mama."

"I want too baby, but I can't," Sonja replied, her heart breaking all over again. "I have to take care of something very important."

Vivian blinked, head rising. "Is it because of Daddy? Is Daddy in trouble?"

Sonja's mouth dropped, her breath caught in her throat. After a second, she felt herself nod and hold her daughter a bit tighter.

"Yes, Viv. Yes he is. Mommy needs to go help him. Will you be a big girl and let me do that?"

Her daughter appeared taken aback, brows scrunched together in confusion. Then, without warning, the girl lunged forward and fell into her mother's arms, burying her face in Sonja's neck.

"I'll be okay. Go help Daddy, please. Help him, Mom."

Sonja thought her daughter was going to burst into tears, but to her surprise, the girl remained calm and voice stronger than ever.

"Uncle Dwayne can take care of us. Daddy needs you," she continued, pulling away to place her small hands on Sonja's cheeks. "Daddy always tells me if anything ever goes wrong you can take care of it, Mama. He says you're the boss lady. If he's in trouble I think you're the only one who can help him."

Sonja licked the dryness of her lips, her eyes welling with tears. She scooped her daughter up and held her in a close embrace as Pride and baby Max watched on.

"You're so smart," Sonja lovingly muttered, kissing her temple. "I love you Vivian LaSalle. You and your brother are the best thing that has ever happened to me. Your Daddy and I love you both so much, do you know that? I'm so proud of you."

A tender moment passed between the girls before Pride stepped in.

"Come here, honey," he said as he retrieved the girl from her mother's arms. "Your mama needs to get a move on."

Sonja briskly made her way over to her son, who stared up at her with his eyes glossy and round.

"Be a good boy for Uncle Dwayne, okay? Mommy will be back soon," she smiled, running her fingers through his thick brown curls.

She placed a kiss atop his head as he returned a grin and diverted his attention to whatever was left on his plate. Sonja then grabbed her cellphone and purse as she threw her hair into a quick ponytail.

"Thanks for this Pride," she announced. "Thank you for everything."

"You're welcome," he smiled, Vivian still relaxed in his arms.

Sonja opened the front door and couldn't help but cast a backwards glance as her thoughts weighed heavy.

"She's right, you know?" Pride gestured to Vivian. Christopher once told me, 'if Sonja had the power to move the Earth and stop time to get what she's after, by God she would do it!', and let me tell you- I believe it."

…

"Wow, I can't believe this whole 'intern' thing actually worked out! I never thought in a million years they would buy it," Sebastian exhaled, wiping faux sweat from his brow.

"Then why would you suggest we do that?" Sonja groaned, leaning against the desk in the lab.

"It was better than saying you're a former NCIS agent, wife of the missing head agent, and have no clearance to be in here but we're bypassing certain laws so I can give you secret information on the case."

"Jesus, Sebastian, would you keep it down?" she hissed, looking over her shoulder. "I'm already paranoid enough!"

"Right, you're right. Sorry," he mumbled, adjusting his glasses.

"Where's your partner, anyway? Shouldn't he be helping with the case too?"

"Oh, yeah. He's been super helpful! Especially when I took a power nap about six hours ago. We've been pretty much working non-stop here."

"I really appreciate that, that's great. Where did he go, then?"

"I told him to go run some things by Patton for a while since I knew you were coming over," he explained, rolling his chair towards his computer monitor. "I would rather keep him in the dark about-'', he gestured between himself and Sonja, "this _thing_."

"Oh. Okay. That's smart if you think he would say something."

"He totally would," Sebastian sighed. "He's a 'do everything by the book' sort of guy- which isn't a bad thing most times."

"Let's get down to business then," Sonja replied, clearing her throat. "Start from the beginning, don't leave out a single detail. What do you know and what's up with headquarters?"

"The place is crawling with FBI agents, man," Sebastian relayed, removing his glasses to squeeze the bridge of his nose in frustration. "They're all over place. With Chris gone it's like they're making themselves at home, or something. It's not cool. I had to get Gregorio out of there before she punched someone in the face."

"Damn it. What about director Hill? Have you told him about the lead on Livingston?"

"Yeah, I called him literally thirty seconds after you left to go to Pride's house last night. I'm not gonna lie, he was skeptical. Nonetheless he accepted the lead and said his men would look into it. I told him we were going to do the same."

"Did he say anything else?"

"He mentioned there was no suspicious activity outside of your house or on the property since Chris's disappearance. He still has the area under surveillance just in case someone or something shows up."

"Okay. Has the FBI updated you with any new information? Did they find anything on Livingston?"

"They said the might have a few things in the works but they're uncertain for the time being." Sebastian rolled his eyes with an annoyed expression. "It seems like they're not so keen on sharing."

"What about you then? _Please_ tell me you found something? I need to know where that bastard Livingston is hiding!"

"Please direct your attention to the screen, Mrs. LaSalle," he smiled, dramatically swiveling in his chair with a click of his remote. "I found a few things that you might find useful."

Sonja rushed to the monitor and gazed into the screen, trying to absorb information as quickly as humanly possible. After a few minutes ticked passed and Sebastian sat quietly in suspense, Sonja broke away from the screen and began chewing on her nail as she paced back and forth.

"So? What do you think? Any ideas?" he pressed, eagerly rising from his seat.

"Livingston was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole. It's been ten years and he somehow escaped from prison a week ago," she mumbled to herself, eyes rapidly blinking. "He wasn't put into solitary isolation so he had the opportunity to communicate with his fellow inmates…"

"Sonja?" he questioned, his forehead forming wrinkles. "What are you thinking?"

"We need to interview cellmates. We need to talk to anyone he ever came in contact with in that prison. You need to get the person in charge on the phone!"

"Sure, yeah, I've got the number right here. You think he had someone on the inside? Maybe one of his old business friends? I'm sure the man has created a social network that extends past New York."

"I'm sure of that, too. It's been over twenty-four hours since LaSalle went missing and we have _ten years_ of criminal history to comb through. Not to mention the phone calls we need to make. This could take days."

Sonja exasperatedly fell into an open chair, her hands covering her disheartened face.

"We got a chance, Sonja. Don't give up," Sebastian encouraged, venturing over to crouch by her side. "I'll make the calls right now and send anything I hear up to the FBI while I double check what they're checking. I'll give Patton and Gregorio a call so we can all work on this together. Time can be on our side if we make it that way, you know? You don't have to do this alone."

She let one of her hands take his as she turned her head to meet his gaze.

"You're right. We can do this."

"That's the spirit!" he grinned, jumping to his feet. "I'll get on the phone right now."

As Sebastian dialed the number, Sonja found herself wandering over to the monitor and reviewing Livingston's information once more, in an attempt to unearth anything familiar. As she became lost in the words and pictures on the screen before her, her mind backtracked ten years prior to the events that took place at the Livingston estate. Images flashed through her head as voices rattled. She heard the sound of women's laughter and Lawrence Livingston's smooth voice. She saw Chris LaSalle in an uncharacteristic outfit of khakis and a plaid shirt. She remembered when he recounted the night they shared their unofficial first date and took her breath away. She felt the tension when Livingston took him away on a golf trip. The touch of his lips ghosted across her own. She closed her eyes and took in a breath. In the next second, realization hit her.

"Okay, great news," she heard Sebastian announce. "The prison management says they will be willing to cooperate fully and send us anything we need. I put them in touch with the FBI and NCIS headquarters so hopefully we will hear some results in the next hour. Luckily Livingston is a wanted man and we have people in New York _and_ New Orleans looking for him!"

"Oh my God, Sebastian! How could I forget! I'm so stupid," Sonja exclaimed, reaching out to take him by the shoulders.

"Uh, Sonja? Did you hear anything I just said?"

"Jan Livingston was arrested too! His _wife._ Whatever happened to her?"

"Well, I- I don't know. I think I must have overlooked that."

"So did I, so did I," she mumbled, turning him around to push him toward his computer. "Look. Check it out. Her name is Jan Livingston and they were arrested the same day."

"Okay, give me a moment," he replied, his fingers moving rapidly across the keyboard.

It didn't take long for a few pages of information to pop up and fill in the rest of the blanks.

"Alright here we go," he began. "Jan Livingston was charged on Aiding and Embedding, her sentence being ten years with a chance for parole."

"Really? Has she been released?"

"Oh, wow. It looks like she got out on parole five years ago. She also filed for divorce from Mr. Livingston that same day."

"Does it say where she lives now?"

Sebastian shook his head. "No, this is all just a bunch of legal stuff. If you want to know that we might have to run it by Patton."

"You don't think you can sneak me into headquarters, can you?"

"No, I doubt it. Director Hill will probably drown us with questions. I'll call Patton and tell him to bring whatever he needs to the lab and to let Gregorio tag along, too. The more the merrier!"

"Perfect. God, this is so exciting Sebastian!" Sonja grinned, her hope rekindling. "If anyone knows where Livingston is, it's Jan. With her help she can lead us straight to Chris."

…

"It looks like Mrs. Livingston turned her last name in for a new one three years ago, and became Jan _Smith_ ," Patton recounted, pulling up the marriage license on the monitor. He then opened up another window and produced a family picture from Facebook, displaying Jan with her new husband and three grown step-children. "This is apparently a photo they used for their Christmas card, and the location is Albany New York."

"I wonder how much dough Mr. Smith's got in the bank," Gregorio scoffed, flipping through papers of the old case file. "The woman probably wouldn't trade a mansion for a condo."

"She decided to move quite a few miles from home, too," Sonja pondered.

"I'm pretty sure I would take a condo over a prison cell," Sebastian cringed, peeking over Gregorio's shoulder to skim the files.

"So, what's the plan Sonja? Do you want me to pinpoint her address and get someone over there to talk to her? Or do you want me to get her phone number?" Patton asked.

"No, if the police show up it might spook her. I don't want her to run. Jan's a fragile lady, let me tell you."

"Okay, how about if director Hill gives her a call? We can try that first before the police make a move," Gregorio suggested.

Sonja shook her head as she bit her lip, crossing over the room to look out the window.

Sebastian stared at the former agent, dumbfounded for the briefest moment, until his jaw dropped and his hands found their way into his hair.

"Sonja. _No_! There's absolutely no way-''

"What's up Sebastian?" Gregorio puzzled. "What am I missing?"

Suddenly Patton's eyes went wide as he jerked his wheelchair backwards, sitting his tablet aside.

"Oh, _hell_ no! Lord Sonja, you gotta be crazy!"

Agent Gregorio, finally catching on, firmly placed her hands on her hips and marched towards Sonja.

"What makes you think we're going to let you go after her? We've already gone _way_ passed illegal, and you think we're going to help you get out of the state?"

"Would you guys calm down?" Sonja huffed. "I haven't even said anything!"

"You didn't have to," Patton said. "It's crystal clear, girl."

"This whole thing is getting out of control," Sebastian sighed. "I agreed to share information, but you skipping town behind the FBI's back might be a _little_ too much, don't ya think?"

"You're right, Sebastian. It is. If we keep going on like this, we're all going to get arrested!" Gregorio interjected, gesturing wildly.

"Okay people, just hear me out for a second. Take a breath," Sonja attempted to soothe. "I thought we were all in this together? Aren't we?"

"We are. I'm just worried that too many lines are being crossed," Gregorio replied.

"How would be sneak you outta here, anyway? The director and his team will come looking for you, eventually," Patton mused.

"It's already the middle of the afternoon, Sonja. You have to take into account the time it will take for you to pack, avoid detection _somehow_ , and hop a flight all the way to freakin' Albany, when we could just give the Smith family a phone call and clear all of this up," Gregorio stated plainly, yanking her cellphone out of her pocket and holding towards Sonja.

"Even if Sonja doesn't meet her in person, if Hill finds out she was in _touch_ with Jan Livingston- I mean, Smith, _all_ of our heads will go on the chopping block," Sebastian pleaded, wringing his hands out on his jeans.

"He's got a point, ya'll. Say Sonja presses a few of her buttons and Jan pops a blood vessel and calls headquarters! The jig will be up," Patton added.

"We need to bring Pride in on this. There's no other option," Gregorio shrugged. "He's the only one who will make sense of this."

"No! _This_ is the only option," Sonja exclaimed, exasperated at her friends argument. "I need to be on a flight to New York by tonight or Chris is done. He won't stand a chance, I'm telling you. It's true, time is the biggest factor in this scenario, and the FBI is taking _all_ the sweet time they need, aren't they? We gave them a lead to the prison and it's been at least an hour and we haven't heard a word. Yes, I promise I will run everything by Pride, but he doesn't get to decide how this plays out, and neither do any of you."

The trio of co-workers stood silent as they all let out a breath.

"I don't like this anymore than you guys," Sonja continued, "But if anyone goes down for this, it's me. If I get put in prison for bringing my husband home, then so be it. None of you told me to do what I'm about to do. Anything I do going forward is of free will."

"What do you want us to do while you're gone? Pursue any leads from the prison?" asked Patton.

"Yes. We need interviews from the guards and any information on Livingston's cellmates, friends, pen-pals, whoever," Sonja replied. "Don't leave any stones unturned."

"You got it," he nodded.

Gregorio gently placed her hand on Sonja's back to gain her attention.

"You can't use your own boarding pass. Hill will find out and waste no time getting your ass sent back to Nola. You're going to need a false identity."

"Oh, I can whip you up one of those," Patton winked. "That's nothin'."

"So illegal," Sebastian muttered, head flopping backwards.

Sonja smiled, her eyes locking with the case files laying on the desk.

"Thanks, Patton, but I don't think you'll have to."

…

"You're telling me you're going to leave town and hop a flight to Albany New York under the pretense of Alicia Matthews to question Jan Livingston?" Pride marveled, taking a stiff drink of scotch.

"Yes, I am," Sonja replied, glancing at her other friends for support. "All my documents are in place. The only thing I had to do was contact the real Alicia Matthews and get things smoothed over with Patton's help."

"So, you're all in on this?" he asked, eyeing the group situated around the dining room table in his house.

"Well…" Sebastian hesitated.

"No. None of them support it, it's fully my decision," Sonja cut in.

"Yet Patton helped you smooth things out concerning your I.D?" Pride let out a sigh and tiredly rubbed his eyes. "I know I said I have your back, but I don't like this one bit, Sonja."

"I know, I know. It's more than risky. All I need you to do is stall Hill for me. Please."

"What do you suggest?"

"We were thinking you could make up a story of her falling ill, or somethin'," Gregorio spoke. "If Hill or his goons come looking for her just say she's held up in her room and wants to be alone. They'll have no reason to force entry."

"That might work the first time they come around, but what am I going to do after that? Say she's asleep or in the shower?" Pride replied. "That's going to begin to sound suspicious."

"That's all we got," Patton shrugged. "We don't have much to work with, but it's _gotta_ work!"

"Oh boy," Pride mumbled, concernedly looking at Sonja from across the table.

"Where are the kiddos?" Sebastian asked, surveying the area.

"They had an early dinner and went to bed. I'm going to go in and sit with them for a moment before I leave," Sonja responded, her smile weary.

"How long will you be gone? A day? Two at max?" Pride questioned. "If Hill or NCIS can't find anything in the meantime, everything will stand still! I don't know how much further the timeline of this case can be stretched."

"Hey, just leave that to us, Pride," Sebastian replied. "We are working on plenty of leads. By tomorrow we'll be looking real good."

"Does Christopher have that much time though?" the retired agent appeared to whisper to himself, his hands covering his face.

"Let's hope so, Pride. We're really hopeful here," Gregorio responded, squeezing his arm.

"I need you to be okay with this, Dwayne. My kids will need you when I'm gone," Sonja implored, standing to walk over to his side. "Please. If I didn't think this could work I wouldn't do it, you know that. It's a gut feeling. I know Jan will lead us to Chris, it's our only shot at bringing him home."

The man and the group of friends sat around the table, wordless, until Pride stood and looked meaningfully into Sonja's eyes. Without a reply, he gave a stern nod and patted her cheek before he began gathering items Sonja would need for her trip.

"I can't say how much you all mean to me," she announced, eyes tearing up. "I couldn't do this without any of you. So, thank you."

Gregorio stood and wrapped her arm around the woman who had grown to be her greatest of friends.

"Good luck, Sonja. You're going to need it."

As Sonja bid farewell to her children, she packed her bags and departed from the home. Reaching into the pocket of her jeans, she pulled out her new burner phone Patton gave her to avoid possible GPS tracking from director Hill. She quickly typed in a number she had memorized by heart and waited for a reply.

"Merri? Hey, it's Sonja. Sorry if you didn't recognize the number, I'm using a burner. I'm going to be out of town for a day or so and I was wondering if your offer still stood- do you think you can fly out and help with the kids?"

…

 _ **8 years earlier…**_

"So, this is like the hundredth time you've stayed at my house, right?" LaSalle smirked, pulling Sonja into his lap. The couch cushioned their weight as she giggled, reaching behind her head to ruffle his hair.

"I wouldn't say _hundredth,_ but yeah, a few. What's your point?"

"We have sleepovers nearly four times a week, my house or yours. Sometimes, we even spend weekends together if we aren't talkin' on the phone till' the wee hours of the mornin', wouldn't ya say?"

"Sure," she nodded, patting his leg. "Where are you going with this, LaSalle?"

"I'm not one for labelin' things, Percy, don't get me wrong. I'm not about that. I was just wonderin' when we're gonna tell the team we're an item?"

"An _item?_ " she laughed. "Oh my God."

"Aren't we?" he returned, playfully kissing her neck. "What else would you call what's been goin' on for nearly three years now?"

"I beg to differ. We've only been this serious for a year." Sonja hopped off his lap and snatched her beer from the coffee table.

"Oh, so we're serious now?" LaSalle chuckled, amusedly scratching his chin. "I can't keep up with ya, City Mouse!"

"Chris, stop. Why can't we just enjoy living in the moment?" Sonja popped one of her homemade vegan snacks in her mouth as her male counterpart rose from the couch.

"We are, but we can only keep this a secret for so long," he replied, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "Remember the time we were makin' out in the kitchen at headquarters and Gregorio nearly caught us? You were traumatized!"

"Whoa. Your memories and mine do _not_ seem to be gelling," Sonja disagreed. "You were being completely obnoxious and I wanted you to shut up, so I kissed you. That's what happened. Gregorio showing up out of nowhere just caught me off-guard."

"Obnoxious? Me?" his face stretched into his signature grin.

"She didn't see anything, either," Sonja added, waving her finger. "She would have made that face where she wrinkles her nose and gets a look of disgust. She didn't say a word."

"I _know_ she saw, because she grabbed my arm and commented when you walked off!" he laughed, slapping his knee.

Sonja was mid-drink as her eyes widened.

"No! What did she say?"

"What does it matter? Apparently we weren't even makin' out," he winked.

" _Christopher!_ Are you saying she already knows about us?"

"Yeah. For a while now," he shrugged.

"Did she tell anyone? Does Pride know?" Sonja sat her drink down and placed her hands on her hips.

"No, I don't think she told anyone. That's why I'm bringin' this up, Sonja," he replied, slowly walking towards her. "The team is gonna find out eventually, so we might as well tell them together. I'd rather not sneak around with you anymore. I'd rather show ya off."

She paused, biting down on her lip to suppress a smile.

"You're asking if we can be official. Is that right?"

LaSalle crossed his arms with a boyish shyness.

"Well, yeah! Yeah, I guess that's what I'm askin'."

"Okay then. We're official. Can we eat now? I'm starving," she laughed, crossing over to the fridge to bring out the food.

"That's it? After all the stubbornness, you're givin' in?" he remarked, almost disbelieving.

"Isn't that what you wanted, LaSalle? Sheesh, sometimes I just don't know about you." Sonja unwrapped a bowl of vegetables with a confused expression.

He sighed, closing the gap between them in mere seconds. He tenderly took her hand as she stopped her movements.

"I told ya labels aren't important to me," he whispered, his thumb tracing circles on the back of her hand. "If you like how things are now, then that's how they'll stay. We don't have to put a name on it. Nobody has to know. I just didn't want news to come out and make you feel vulnerable, is all. It's our news and we should be the one sharin' it."

Sonja stood still as moments ticked by, their eyes locked in an unending gaze. She then abandoned the bowl and wrapped her arms around LaSalle's neck, their bodies molding together in perfect synchronicity.

"You can be such a bone-head sometimes, but _damn_ do you have a way with words," she spoke softly, her cheeks becoming warm.

"You're not mad at me, then?" he laughed, his lips brushing against her hair.

"No, I'm not mad. Chris, I'm the happiest I've ever been! If you want us to share the news, then that's what we'll do. I won't have a problem with it."

"You're sure?"

" _Yes._ You're right, the team would find out eventually anyway. We should tell them ourselves."

He slightly moved backwards to glimpse her face.

"So I have full permission to call you my girlfriend now? Is that correct?"

"God, _yes,_ LaSalle," she laughed, her eyes rolling. "Don't make me change my mind."

"Don't worry, I won't," he replied, quickly kissing her cheek before retrieving his cellphone. "I need to update my Facebook and let everyone know I'm officially off the market!"

She swiped the phone out of his grasp before he could do any damage.

"I don't think so, Lover Boy. Sebastian would see that in two seconds and call the entire city!"

"Oh. Good call," he nodded. "Better to wait until tomorrow after we tell them personally."

"Tomorrow?" she sighed, shaking her head with a smile. "Can't wait."

"Now that _that's_ all settled, you ready for some dinner?" he grinned. "I tried to make ya a thing or two, but as you know, vegan food and I don't really get along."

"I know," she smiled. "I prepared in advance."

"That's smart thinkin'!"

The couple quietly arranged their meal as they shared smiles and chuckled lightly. With their plates of food ready, the seated themselves on the couch. Sonja turned her body towards his and laid her head on his shoulder with a sigh.

"Don't get soft on me, LaSalle," she whispered, her lips splitting into a grin.

"Oh man, don't ya start with this again," he remarked, his sides shaking with laughter.

Sonja whacked his leg.

"That's not what you're supposed to say. Try again."

He cleared his throat and turned towards her, brushing his nose against her own. His breath was hot, and his voice was low.

"I'm not soft. I care about you, you idiot."

"I love you too," she smiled, their food nearly forgotten, as their lips grew nearer.

"Chris," she continued, slowing down the momentum. "Do you think this would have ever happened even if I didn't kiss you before you left with Livingston that day?"

Christopher LaSalle recalled the moment vividly, and without hesitation, he replied "I know it would."

…

" _Are you sure this is the right address? Patton, please tell me you know what you're doing!"_

" _Of course I'm sure! I'm not about to let you mess this up, okay? Just cool down before you go up to the door. Collect yourself."_

" _I'm cool, trust me."_

" _You sound like you're about to throw up!"_

" _I'm fine!" Sonja exclaimed, checking her appearance in the rearview mirror. "Everything went smoothly at the airport, no one suspected a thing. Everything is going according to plan."_

" _Good. Let me help you feel even better and tell you Sebastian has been in touch with director Hill. Apparently there are talks going on between the FBI and Livingston's prison manager and associates. We should have some solid news soon."_

" _Thanks, Patton. Do you know if Meri made it into town alright? Is she with Pride and the kids?"_

" _Yeah, she's good. The kids were real happy to see her."_

" _That's great," she sighed with relief. "I'll be home soon. If I get anything important I'll call you or Sebastian before I board my flight. I gotta go."_

Sonja snapped out of her trance as she leaned against her rental car in the front yard of the Smith household. It was a quaint house settled into a residential neighborhood, nothing compared to her former establishment. There was no gate with guards in charge of security, there wasn't hundreds of yards of sprawling green grass. The house was ordinary, and the garage small. If Jan was trying to stay under the radar, this was the place to be. Patton had even run a background check on the new husband, Ivan Smith, whose record came back clear. He wasn't a millionaire. He worked as the manager of a local grocery store just five miles from their home. Nothing flashy, nothing impressive- just plain _ordinary._

Sonja had run plenty of scenarios through her head as she drove to the airport, boarded the flight, exited the flight and paid for a rental car. Even as she plugged the address into her GPS and set towards the destination, scenarios continued to invade her mind. What if Jan didn't recognize her? What if she flipped out and called the police? What if she knows where LaSalle is and was in on it with Livingston the whole time?

These questions haunted her as she forced her limbs to climb the unbalanced set of stones that lead to the front door. Visions flashed through her head of Matilda, Livingston's head housekeeper, dragging her and LaSalle's luggage up the steps of the mansion. This time there was no mansion, there were no grand outfits, no secret identities and lies. More importantly, there was no Chris. He had been missing for over forty-eight hours and time wasn't forgiving.

Her impulse was turn and run, but Sonja found her hand moving on its own accord, lifting and knocking on the door.

"Be right there! Give me one second," she heard an unfamiliar voice reply. A man's voice.

There was a banging sound and set of other unfamiliar voices until the door eventually swung open, and revealed a middle-aged man in a gray t-shirt. He ruffled his salt and pepper hair with a lopsided grin.

"Hello. What can I help you with today?" he asked, reaching his hand out to shake her own. Sonja noted he was without a New York accent.

"Uh, hi," she stuttered. "I'm here to see Jan, is she around today?"

"May I ask your name? Jan isn't fond when people just swing by unannounced," he chuckled, crossing his arms sheepishly. "She's kind of a control freak, likes the house clean for company."

"Yeah, I totally understand that," Sonja replied, her nerves mounting. "Tell her it's Sonja Percy. I haven't seen her in a few years, but I'm in town so I thought I would stop by."

"Okay! No problem. I'll just grab Jan and see if she's up for it."

The man cracked the door shut and called for his wife. Sonja bit her lip as the couple squabbled for a minute or two, until he popped the door back open.

"I'm sorry Sonja, Jan doesn't remember you for some reason. Are you friends from work? College? I could try to jog her memory!"

"Oh gosh," Sonja fumbled, cold sweat forming on her neck. "It was a bit more casual than that. We met at a party, sort of. I'm friends with her friends."

"Hm," he nodded, brows furrowed. "I'm sure sorry you drove out for nothing! I wish I could have helped you."

"Yeah, me too," she whispered, turning to walk away.

An odd sensation took hold of her, causing her to halt in her path. If Sonja were thinking logically, she'd say she was insane. It was barely noticeable, but felt as if a ghost of a touch. A touch consisting of a hand wrapping itself around her arm. The only recollection she had of such a memory, was when she were working a case with LaSalle and she would have bursts of frustration and walk away. Or when she became emotionally overwhelmed and couldn't bear him to witness it. It was the same touch. It vanished as quickly as it appeared, and Sonja could feel oxygen reacquainting itself with her body. The door of the Smith residence was creaking shut. Sonja stuck out a hand and blocked it. Ivan raised a brow.

"I'm sorry this has all been so confusing, but I've been a little nervous bringing up the subject of my arrival. Our friend, Alicia Matthews, has some important news she would like for me to share with Jan. It's private, if you don't mind." Sonja heard the words leaving her mouth before she had a chance to stop herself or formulate them.

"Oh," he blinked, scratching his head. "No, it's okay. I understand. I'll go get Jan, hold on."

" _Shit,"_ she breathed, the moment he departed. "Here we go."

Sonja heard a woman raise her voice defensively then quiet. Heated words were being exchanged. The sound of high heels clacked to the door, until a timid hand pushed it open. Standing there before her, finally, was Jan Livingston. The woman stood there dumbfounded as her glass of water crashed to the floor. Her husband came running to investigate.

"Jan! Honey? Are you okay?" he exclaimed, touching her face before bending down to pick up the shards of broken glass.

She yanked him upwards, forcibly smiling.

"Please, Ivan. Don't worry about the mess," she instructed, voice disturbingly calm. "Leave me with my friend."

"Alright," he nodded, slightly suspicious. "I'll be in the kitchen if you need me."

Jan released her hold on the back of his shirt as he hesitantly left.

The moment he was out of earshot, Jan pushed Sonja out of the doorway with the palm of her hand, shutting the door behind them.

"Are you crazy?" she snapped, her hand remaining on Sonja's chest. "How in the _hell_ did you find me? What on _earth-''_

"I see we're bypassing pleasantries," Sonja mumbled, swiping Jan's hand away.

"What are you doing here?" Jan continued, sweeping her bleach blonde bangs from her eyes. "You need to leave. Right now."

Sonja was slightly taken aback by the woman's appearance as she soaked the situation in. Jan's hair was the same color and length as she remembered, but now sported bangs. Her long, painted nails were short and bare. Her outfit consisted of jeans and a blouse. Her face was free of make-up, and bags lay underneath her eyes.

"Do you know who I am?" Sonja asked, ignoring the woman's comments.

Jan scoffed, flinging her arms in the air.

"Of course I know!" she replied. "You paraded around my house as Alicia Matthews with your partner for two days then ended up arresting me! NCIS agents from New Orleans sleeping underneath my roof, my God…"

"You're right. All of that, and more, happened ten years ago."

"Exactly! _Ten_ years ago. Why have you sought me out now?"

"I have a few questions for you. I need everything you know on Lawrence Livingston since the day of his arrest."

"What?" she huffed, "Is this about Amber Matthews and the old case? What else is there to say? The case is closed. You know what he did."

"It's not about that," Sonja refuted, crossing her arms. "I assume you know he escaped from prison a week ago?"

"Yes, I know." Jan anxiously glanced over her shoulder with an uneasy expression. "I've been a nervous wreck wondering if he's going to come after me. That's why Ivan has been so worried about me, bless him."

"He knows about your past, then?"

The woman shrugged. "Sure. As much as I wanted to tell him. He obviously knows I was married and that I was briefly incarcerated because of my husband's deeds."

"Okay, listen. To get straight to the point, I don't know what you could have done to make Livingston come after you, but that's not the case," Sonja grimly informed her.

"What are you talking about? You act as if you've spoken with him!" Jan recoiled, gluing her body against the door. "What the hell is going on? Tell me now or I'm calling the police."

"He took Christopher LaSalle, Jan. My partner on the Amber Matthews case. Chris is gone."

"Oh my God," she muttered, placing the back of her hand on her forehead. "How is that possible? Do you have any evidence?"

"No," Sonja shook her head. "All we know is Livingston escaped from prison one week ago and forty-eight hours ago Chris went missing."

"I'm sorry, I wouldn't put it past Lawrence to do something of that nature, but how can you be sure? What if your partner has enemies?"

"I'm not sure, Jan!" Sonja exploded, eyes wide. "I have no clues, no leads, _nothing_. Coming to see you is my only hope of bringing him home. I need your help."

Jan slowly brought her arms to side and stared into Sonja's eyes.

"You two," she pointed, "You two fell in love, didn't you?" Jan continued to stare. "All that, _chemistry_ you put on for us, was actually real?"

"We didn't know then, exactly," Sonja responded, a tear escaping down her cheek. "But yes, we did. We're married. We have two kids."

"Oh," she whispered, her mouth hanging slightly open.

"I have a damn good feeling Livingston is in on this," Sonja pushed, walking closer. "He's clever enough to pull this off but not _that_ clever. I know he must have someone or some people working with him. I'm hoping you can give me some names."

"Well, I," she stammered, slightly dazed, "I don't know all of his henchmen by name. I barely had any contact with him in the prison."

"Did you see him making phone calls? Writing letters? Pulling guys to the side or anything?"

"His contact with the outside world was strictly limited," she replied. "I do recall knowing that he could not make phone calls or write letters. He was allowed visitation hours, though."

"Okay. Do you know if he had any visitors?"

"I think he did, but I don't know who. I'm sorry."

"To evade detection he must have drove to New Orleans," Sonja mused. "He either had someone helping him get there or he had someone _waiting_ there. He was a business man, he must have had connections all over the world, correct?"

"Yes, that's true," Jan nodded with a sigh.

"Then help me comb through his social network. Does he know anyone in New Orleans?"

"Oh God, I don't know," she puzzled, her trembling fingers touching her lip. "I'm sure there's someone. Especially if Lawrence has been planning this grand escape for ten years."

"Think, Jan. _Please._ If you care about LaSalle as much as I think you did, then help me find him!"

"I'm trying, I'm trying!" she shrieked, face anguished.

Sonja heard a pair of footsteps approaching the door.

"Honey," Ivan knocked, "Are you guys okay? Do you want to come in?"

Jan was silently contemplating her options as Sonja looked on, her teeth digging into her lip.

"No. No, darling. We're fine," she responded, eyes deadlocked with Sonja's.

"You sure?" he asked, voice laced with concern.

"Yes. However, could you bring me my old photo album? There's something I want to look at that may be helpful."

"Okay!"

The women eagerly waited for her husband's return. Ivan produced the requested photo album less than five minutes later and left them to their own devices.

"Why did you need this?" Sonja asked. "Did you remember someone Livingston works with?"

"Yes, but the thing is, Lawrence doesn't _work_ with him. He's never conducted business of any kind with the man."

"What man? Who?"

Jan quickly flipped through the photo album until she stopped on a page that held a Polaroid of a younger Lawrence Livingston and a mystery man. They were grinning, arms wrapped around one another.

"Him," she directed, pointing to the man. "This is Lawrence's cousin. They only met in person probably twice in their whole lives. He lived in New Orleans last time I checked, which was about twenty years ago. I have no idea if he's still there or why he would help Lawrence abduct your husband."

"Name? Occupation?" Sonja questioned, pulling out a notepad and pen.

"Charlie Jameson. He owned an auto-body shop. Again, I can't guarantee if the shop is still there or if he's there."

"Do you know the address of the shop?"

"Oh, no. I'm afraid not. I'm sorry," Jan replied. "I never met him. I don't know anything about him."

"Okay, this is good. I can work with this," Sonja mumbled to herself, observing the list she created on her notepad. "I need to get this to the lab. Do you have anything else?"

"No, as far as I know that would be Lawrence's only soul connection to the area. I apologize I can't be more helpful. I also apologize for yelling at you," Jan stated regretfully, with a weak smile. "When my past catches up with me I tend to become quite erratic. I worked hard at creating the life I have now and I just don't want it to stop. It's not your fault I ended up where I am. I know where the blame lies."

"No need to apologize," Sonja returned the smile. "I know how strange all of this must be. I don't want to take anything away from you. All I want is my husband back."

"Here," Jan slipped the photograph out from behind its protective covering, and placed it in Sonja's hand. "I sincerely hope this helps bring your husband home. He's a good man who doesn't deserve what Lawrence has done. Your family is in my prayers."

"Thank you," Sonja sniffled, gripping the photo. "I hope you rest easy knowing Livingston is going to be off the streets for good, and you helped make it happen."

"No, thank _you_. I wish you good luck, Sonja. Goodbye and see you around."

Sonja patted the woman's arm and laughed, turning away and casting a glance over her shoulder.

"Goodbye Jan, and hopefully you won't."

…

"Sebastian! You won't believe it, but I finally got a lead. I can't wait to tell you!"

"Well, that's a coincidence because I have quite the lead too," he replied excitedly. "How did everything go with the ex-Mrs. Livingston? Is she a suspect?"

"No, she's innocent. She answered all my questions. How about you tell me your lead first?"

Almost two hours had passed since Sonja amicably departed from Jan's house and packed her bags to return home. As she was waiting to board the flight, she couldn't help but update the team with new information and check on the progress of the case.

"Apparently when the prison manager went to interview the guards, one of the guys started to look shifty and split! He was taken into custody moments after. To make a long story short, the dude admitted to working with Livingston with the promise of wiring some cash. The agreement was concocted nearly a year ago, but it turned out taking a long time to get the ball rolling. Livingston didn't hold up on the end of his deal, either. The cash never came through. Nonetheless, we aren't crazy Sonja! This is really happening. Livingston definitely took Chris. We have confirmation."

"Wow," she whispered in disbelief. "I'm speechless. This has been in the works for a year…"

"Yeah, as far as we know. It's hard to say if Livingston planned this from the get-go. But hey, this is the news we've been waiting for! What about your lead? What did you find?"

"Well, I _thought_ I was sure of who is working with Livingston until you told me all of this," Sonja responded in confusion. "How was the guard working with Livingston, exactly? What information was he giving him?"

"He said he was communicating with someone on the outside for him. He hasn't given up the name yet, he's still interrogation."

Sonja nearly jumped.

"I have the name," she spat, grasping the paper attached to the photograph in her hand. "Charlie Jameson. He's an auto-body shop owner in New Orleans."

"Wait- _what?_ What does any auto-body shop owner have to do with this?"

"He's Livingston's cousin," Sonja explained. "He's the only connection Livingston has to New Orleans that Jan can think of."

"Do you have an address?"

"No. All I have is a name. Please tell me you can work with that."

"Of course," he replied, voice certain. "Between me and Patton we can make anything happen!"

"Good. I'm about to get on the plane. Expect me at Pride's house soon, I need everyone to reconvene there. I'll text you when I land."

"Alright, Sonja. We'll be here."

…

It was late afternoon by the time Sonja arrived in New Orleans and made her way to Pride's house. She spent a good while with the children who had missed her deeply, until Meredith Brody took them into the backyard to play. Patton, Sebastian, Gregorio and Pride reunited with Sonja in the living room.

"Did Hill know I was gone? Did he come by the house?" she asked, glancing at all the familiar faces.

"He came by to check on you," Pride sighed, methodically rubbing his chin. "I told him you were getting some sleep in the guest room. He left shortly after that."

"Thank God," Sonja breathed, collapsing onto the couch.

"I'm glad to hear you and Mrs. Livingston departed on good terms," Gregorio nodded. "The information she gave you is gonna solve this whole thing, I know it."

"For sure. Sebastian sent the FBI the name you provided us and results should be coming in soon," Patton added.

"Yeah, speaking of soon," Sebastian announced, lifting his eyes from his cell phone, "I just got a message from director Hill. They tracked down the auto-body shop twenty miles from headquarters. The owner and management name is under a 'Charlie Jameson'. They're about to send a team to check it out."

"What if Livingston is there and they spook him? He can't get away!" Sonja reacted, launching upward from her seat. "They have to be careful about this."

"They will proceed with caution, I promise you," Pride soothed, taking her by the shoulders. "They wouldn't put Christopher's life in jeopardy."

"How about if they wait till nightfall? There'd be more coverage," Gregorio suggested.

"There's just not enough time," Patton conjectured. "If they don't go now it may be too late."

"Don't say that, please," said Sebastian. "We need LaSalle to hold on for a little while longer…"

"Come on, gang. Take a breather," Pride insisted, coaxing the group to sit down. "We're gonna play this smart and take it step by step, okay? All we need to do is be patient and wait to see what the team comes up with. If it looks like Christopher is there we'll make a move. Deal?"

They reluctantly nodded in agreement, gathered around Sebastian's phone for any further messages. An hour agonizingly passed, and Sonja was about to lose all morals and kick down the door, when a text message arose on the screen. Sebastian scooped up the phone and clicked the icon as the team crowded around him for answers. He gaped at the device for nearly two minutes.

"Oh. Oh my _God_ ," he babbled, almost unaware.

"For Christ Sake Sebastian, spit it out. What's going on?" Gregorio snapped, giving him a shove.

"Did they find LaSalle? Come on man, fess up!" Patton shouted.

"Sebastian? Do ya hear me? You need to tell everyone what's going on before the team ends up tearing apart my house. Okay, son?" Pride encouraged, stooping down in an attempt to create eye contact.

"Hey," Sonja spoke, causing the group to look in her direction. Sebastian even tore his eyes away from the phone at the command of her voice.

"Tell me now," she continued, voice steady. "I'm ready to know."

"They, uh," Sebastian began, clearing his throat, "They went to investigate the shop and found a truck covered with a tarp in the backyard. It's LaSalle's truck. His badge and gun were found lying on the floorboard."

The room fell silent, eyes watching.

"Hill said it looked like there had been a struggle. There was blood on the steering wheel, headrest of the driver's seat, and on the dashboard. They're going to send the samples over to me for DNA testing."

"And?" Sonja whispered, her body going cold.

"They're moving in," Sebastian replied, his eyes glossy. "Hill gave his team the green light. They're going in for LaSalle."

 **To be continued…**

 **Post A/N:**

Okay, WOW. What a chapter. I hope I didn't lose any of you with such a long wait on updating, but it's so challenging to find a time to write when you're a college student! To make up for it, I took my time perfecting this and making it the longest update ever. What did you guys think? The flashbacks are _killing_ me, to be honest. Everything is so freaking emotional! (Insert crying face here). I also think it's cool on the actual show Gregorio is now a part of the team and LaSalle had a day to be the boss when Pride was away on the oil rig! How cool. _Are the writers stealing my material...?_ I hope you guys like this futuristic version of the team I have concocted. It's been really fun. Look forward to the third and _ **final**_ chapter of this series very soon! Its bitter sweet to be wrapping up the 'Mr. and Mrs. Matthews' saga, but don't worry, I'm definitely planning to start anew! Please leave me a review and/or message me with any questions or prompts you guys would like to read about. I'm willing to take Percy and LaSalle on plenty of journeys. I appreciate all of your support! You guys are the reason I keep writing- so thank you.

Now that we know where LaSalle is and who has him…. _**Will he be found dead or alive?**_


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own any characters affiliated with the T.V program NCIS: New Orleans.**

 **Please Review!**

…

" _They're moving in," Sebastian replied, his eyes glossy. "Hill gave his team the green light. They're going in for LaSalle."_

Those few words reverberated through Sonja's ears like a drum as the room erupted in chaos. Gregorio jumped from her seat and dialed NCIS headquarters, urgently asking whether or not she and her teammates were being called in as back-up. Patton, half in on the conversation, yelled his remarks her way as his fingers rapidly beat down upon his tablet. Sebastian stood, knees wobbling, as he raked his nails through his hair. Pride was bouncing back and forth between each person in an attempt at peacekeeping.

"I have to get back to the lab. They're sending over the blood sample, not to _mention_ in any other evidence they may find. Oh God, what could they find…" Sebastian mumbled to himself, covering his mouth in fret.

"It's official, we're being sent down to the auto-body shop," Gregorio announced, stuffing her cellphone in her pocket. "NCIS has been requested for back-up."

"Do we have an update? Did Hill's team find anything?" said Pride, arms crossed.

"All they would say is that units are currently in pursuit. We got nothin' else."

"Then enough yappin'!" Patton interjected. "Get your stuff and get outta here!"

"He's right," Pride nodded. "They're gonna need your help, Gregorio."

"What about me? Should I stay here or head back to the lab?" Sebastian butt in.

"You need to go too, Son. Your job is just as important."

"While you're at it, give me a lift so I can go along with you. I'm gonna see if I can hack any nearby security camera's so we can get a clear shot of the scene," Patton instructed.

With the exception of Pride, the group gathered their belongings and headed for the door. Suddenly, the sound of a harsh whistle screeched through the room. The team members gasped, holding their ears in agony. The sound didn't cease until all attention was diverted to the lone woman standing next to the coffee table.

"So, you're _actually_ planning on leaving me behind? You're just going to walk out of here without me?" Sonja's voice was calm, but laced with a note of intensity.

"It's not that simple, Sonja," Gregorio replied softly. "If we could bring you, we would."

"Hell yes we would," Patton nodded. "You're the reason LaSalle is even bein' rescued right now! If anyone deserves to be there, it's you."

"Then take me!"

"Sonja," Pride let out a sigh. "You know it's against protocol. Hill will probably be there any second, if he isn't already, and if he catches one _glimpse_ of you it's over. He'll know you went behind his back, and we'll all be charged."

"How am I supposed to sit here and be quiet when all I've been waiting on for the past two days is bringing my husband home?" she exclaimed, arms flung in the air. "I have to be there when they find him. I _have_ to be."

"We've got to make a decision soon, guys. We're late on arrival," Gregorio worriedly informed them.

"How about we all go and Pride can drive Sonja to the scene?" Sebastian suggested, adjusting his glasses. "All you have to do is stay out the way and hope you're not discovered. It's still risky, I know, but Sonja has a point. She should be there- law abiding or not."

"Thank you," Sonja whispered, a smile finding its way onto her lips.

"Oh boy," Pride muttered, biting into his fist.

"What do you say, Pride? Yay or nay?" said Gregorio eyeing the door.

After a beat, the retired agent gave a reluctant nod.

"I'll tell Brody we're heading out. Everyone get ready to go, and for God's sake, be _careful._ "

"You got it, Boss," Sebastian grinned before scrunching his brow. "Uh- not boss, but you know what I mean! This has got me feeling nostalgic, like the old days!"

"Okay then, now that everybody's settled, let's roll!" Gregorio voiced, swinging open the door.

It took Pride only a few seconds to inform Brody of the plan and return to Sonja's side, ushering her out the door behind the rest of the crew.

"Are you ready if things go south?" he asked, glancing her direction as they made their way to his vehicle. "Are you prepared for what could happen?"

"I don't know, Dwayne. Are you referring to Hill, Livingston, or LaSalle?"

"Either or," he replied, opening the passenger side door.

"I don't think I could ever prepare myself for something like that, but I know I'm going to deal with it. Is that good enough?"

Sonja waited for her old friend's response as he made his way to the driver side and stooped into his seat.

"Yeah. I think that's how I feel about it, too," came his somber response.

"Listen," Sonja reached over and touched his hand resting upon the gear shift. "I want you to know, whatever happens, I thank you for everything you've ever done for Christopher and me. You're like a father to us and you've always been such an important part of our lives. He would be so grateful for you helping me get passed these last few days…"

"No, Sonja. Don't talk like this," he started, voice shaky. "Me, you, and Christopher are _all_ going to have this conversation together. After this is over we're going to sit down and talk and everything will be alright. We'll all have some dinner and we'll play board games with the kids like we used to do. Do ya understand me? We will."

Sonja could feel his fist tightening around the gear shift underneath her palm.

"Okay, Dwayne. Okay." she fiercely gulped, suppressing tears.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, putting the truck into drive.

She retracted her hand, buckling herself into the seat.

"He really loves you, you know," she offhandedly replied, staring out the window. "Even if he never says it."

"I love him too, and after today, I'll make sure he knows it."

…

 _ **10 years earlier…**_

"LaSalle? Is that you? Christopher, _say_ something! You're scaring me," Sonja exclaimed into her phone as she tripped out of bed, awkwardly catching herself on her bedside table. It was in the early hours of the morning and her bedroom was pitch dark. She winced as pain shot through her mending shoulder wound.

"Yeah-yes. It's me. I'm sorry Sonja," he apologized, voice unsteady. "I don't know why this is happenin' to me…"

It had been over a month since they closed the Amber Matthews case and returned to NCIS headquarters in New Orleans, bandages and all. The last thing either of them counted on was carrying back _emotional_ baggage as well. Everything seemed to be slipping back into a normal routine until the past week or so. Out of the blue, LaSalle had been calling Sonja at odd hours of the night. He would either call and be silent on the line, or sob uncontrollably and hang up. At first, Sonja was annoyed and didn't understand what was going on with her partner. After the eighth consistent phone call, she was becoming increasingly concerned. It also didn't help that when she tried to confront him about it privately, he would brush her off and say he had too much to drink, or she was overreacting. Sonja knew he wasn't an alcoholic and couldn't figure out _what_ he was trying to hide. Tonight was the last straw, she had had enough. If LaSalle wouldn't open up and let her in on his secret, she was going to take matters into her own hands. If that meant telling Pride every single detail, then that's what she was going to do- neither of them could continue going on like this.

"Chris, _please_ don't hang up. What do you mean what's 'happening' to you? What's going on?"

"I- I don't know. I thought I was fine. It's just ever since these _dreams_ started, I've been messed up in the head. It's really gettin' to me, Percy."

"Okay, okay. What dreams? What are you dreaming about?"

The line went silent and Sonja became anxious, gripping the sheets on her bed.

"No… I can't talk about it. I changed my mind, I have to go…"

"LaSalle! Please! Just stay where you are, I'm coming to you. You're at home, right?"

She heard a deep sigh as he paused again.

"Really, Percy, it ain't a big deal. I'm a grown man, I can deal with it-''

"Clearly, you _can't_ , because I wouldn't be on the phone with you every single night if you were alright!" she cut in, agitated. "Just sit your ego aside for a second and tell me where you are. I'm your partner, damn it! I'm here to help you, so _let_ me."

LaSalle, realizing he hit a nerve, didn't want to make matters worse.

"I'm at home, okay? Are ya happy now?"

"I'm sleep deprived, so no, far from it," she replied, eyes rolling. "I'm going to get dressed and be there in twenty minutes. Unlock the door for me."

"There's no way out of this one, huh?" he grumbled, rubbing his equally tired eyes.

"Absolutely not. See you in a few."

…

Before Sonja laid a knuckle on his door to knock, it gently became ajar, and a disheveled agent LaSalle appeared on the other side with a weary smile.

"Hey," he whispered, scratching his broad bare chest. The only thing he had bothered putting on was a pair of gray sweatpants.

"Hi," she answered, wrapping her cardigan tightly around her body. In her rush to get out the door, she managed to find a clean tank top and shorts. Luckily, her favorite cardigan was already laying in the backseat of her car.

"Well, I guess you'd better come in," he nodded, stepping aside to let her pass.

Sonja noticed his house was just as unkempt as his appearance, unknown to her that his mind was in similar disarray. She stepped over piles of clothes and magazines until she found the couch and sat down, waiting for him to join her in the living room.

"Can I get ya somethin' to drink? Are ya thirsty?" he politely asked, avoiding the elephant in the room.

"No, Chris, I'm fine. I'm more interested in talking about you." Sonja crossed her arms, her eyes concernedly following him around the room as he paced.

"I don't know where to start," he replied, sulking over to a window to look out at the moon. "I don't know."

"You said you were having dreams. What kind of dreams? Nightmares?"

It took him a second to respond, his head turning to make eye contact. He nodded.

"Yeah, I suppose that's what they are. Really bad nightmares."

"Do you get those a lot?" Sonja asked, almost feeling as if she were a therapist. "Is that a common thing for you?"

"No. That's what's confusin' to me. I rarely ever get nightmares." LaSalle absentmindedly began picking up discarded books and sat them back on their shelves.

"What are they about? What happens that makes you so upset you have to call me?"

LaSalle stopped picking up books and crossed his arms defensively, mirroring Sonja's body language.

"I'd rather not get into that," he responded, walking into the kitchen.

"If you don't talk about it, it's only going to get worse. _Trust_ me on this one," his partner replied, having flashbacks of her own situations.

"I don't think I'm ready, okay? It's not good stuff."

"Of course it's not, that's why they're called 'nightmares'," she sighed. "LaSalle, I thought you could tell me anything. _Especially_ after our time together in New York. I thought we would grow closer, not further apart. You're shutting me out…"

"Sonja, please. You're wrong," he began, making his way back into the living room. "I'm not tryin' to shut you out."

"That's all you've been doing since these dreams started!" she yelled, unable to keep her composure. "We were doing great the first few weeks back on the job and suddenly now I'm getting the cold shoulder. Why? I thought I was worth more than that to you. I thought I _meant_ something to you-"

" _You do!"_ he exclaimed, voice rising several levels. In the blink of an eye, LaSalle was across the room and knelt in front of his partner, his strong hands taking hold of her arms. "Sonja," he gulped, eyes intense, "You mean the world to me. Don't ya know that?"

In shock, she breathlessly tried to mutter a response.

"I thought I knew," she whispered, eyes wide. "I don't know what to think when you brush me off at work and hang up after _you_ call _me._ "

LaSalle deeply inhaled, the grip on her arms lessening. Letting go, he sat on the couch next to her and tried to formulate his speech.

"You. They're about you."

Sonja blinked. "What is about me?"

"My nightmares. They're about you."

"LaSalle! What do you mean? I'm making you have bad dreams?" Sonja flung her hands to her face and groaned. "How could I have done that?"

"No, no, no. _You_ didn't make me do anythin', Percy. Just listen to me for a second," he begged, reaching out to grasp her hand.

She paused, eyes falling on their joined hands. She nodded.

"Okay. Explain."

"My dreams… they all start with us back at Livingston's mansion-"

"No, don't you dare start that with me again Christopher," Sonja cut in yanking her hand away from his. "My injuries are not your fault! Look at me, I'm fine! We were in that fight together. We both got hurt."

"I'm not blamin' myself for that, that's not what's hauntin' me," he refuted, trying to get her attention. "That's not it."

"Okay," Sonja breathed, trying to calm down. "What else about me then?"

"I keep dreamin' that Livingston succeeded in killin' you, alright?" he muttered, biting his lip. "Every dream it's a different way of killin' you."

Sonja's body went cold, her mouth clamping shut. Minutes ticked by before he spoke again.

"When he left me tied to that chair to die, and told me he was on his way to kill you…" LaSalle shakily whispered, "That was probably the lowest point of my life. I had to sit there, hopelessly wonderin' how long it would take him to get to your room. I had to think about what he would do to you…"

"Chris, please…"

"No, let me finish. I need to do this," he interrupted with certainty.

Sonja didn't stop him.

"I would have gave my life for yours, _ten_ times over, but there was nothin' I could do. I thought findin' you alive and comin' home would fix eveythin' for me, but I guess I underestimated my anguish."

He shook his head and reclined against the back of the couch, staring up at the ceiling.

"Once I stopped lyin' to myself, the dreams came rollin' in like a threatenin' storm. Night after night, my mind took me back in time. There I was, just _standin'_ in our room at the mansion, watchin' Livingston strangle you, stab you, shoot you, you name it. Obviously, it's been takin' a toll on me…"

"LaSalle," she whispered, covering her mouth. "Oh my God. _That's_ why you've been calling me?"

"I didn't really mean to, to be honest," he sadly smiled. "It just felt so real my first reaction was to call you and see if you were really here or not. I'm sorry if I scared ya."

"Don't be sorry, it's not your fault. None of what happened was your fault," Sonja consoled, rolling in his direction to wrap her arms around him in a hug. It was the first time in a long time that she heard the laugh that she loved so.

"Shoot, if I knew I was gonna get a hug after all of this, I woulda told you sooner," he chuckled, casually rubbing her back.

Sonja flicked the back of his head.

"Hey, LaSalle, why don't you ruin the moment?"

He sighed, breath hot on her neck as he drew her in closer.

"Oh, Percy. Don't ya know that's what I do best?"

The night after their talk LaSalle's nightmares ended. Sonja sat eagerly by the phone waiting for a call that never came. They both puzzled over how something so strange could come and go so quickly. His house was back in order, and their partnership stronger than ever. Now, the only thing replaying itself over and over again in LaSalle's head, were the words Sonja left him with before she went home, as she whispered in his ear.

" _I'm here, he's there, and I'm not going anywhere."_

…

"Do we have eyes on Livingston? I need confirmation, men! Somebody report back," Director Hill was yelling into his walkie-talkie from his vehicle outside the auto-body shop, only being on the scene less than twenty minutes. "Can I get a confirmation on Agent LaSalle?"

"Negative, Sir. We're making our way through the shop and towards an office door. No sign of movement," an agent replied.

"Any signs of Jameson? Be on the alert," Hill instructed.

A large rap sounded on the director's window, causing him to jump. When he saw who was causing the intrusion he groaned, rolling down the window.

"Agent Gregorio, do you want to fill me in on _why_ exactly you and your team have been MIA on this mission? You had specific orders to report as back-up, and for some reason I find you knocking on my window instead of leading your team inside that building to retrieve your missing agent?"

"I apologize, Sir," Gregorio responded, biting her cheek to refrain from sarcastic comments. "I didn't want to move in and jeopardize the mission if your team had Livingston or Jameson in your sights."

"That doesn't tell me why you were late," he squinted, adjusting his tie. "Why don't you and your team cover the back of the building? I have a feeling things are going to get interesting fairly quickly."

"You got it," she nodded, ushering her team members to follow. In the back of her mind, Gregorio wondered if Hill knew what they were up to all along.

The director shook his head and turned his attention back to the walkie, stepping out of the vehicle.

"I need an update, men!" he shouted. "Everyone be ready," he exclaimed, addressing the officers and agents armed to the teeth.

…

"Oh gosh. Just as we suspected," Sebastian announced, sweating rolling down his cheek. The moment he and Patton arrived at the lab, they got to work. Sebastian began running DNA samples he was sent from LaSalle's truck and Patton quickly figured out a way to hack the closest security cameras to the scene.

"What did you find, Sebastian? Spit it out man!" Patton encouraged, pulling the footage up on the big screen.

"It's a match. The blood belongs to LaSalle," he replied, beginning to pace. "This is not good, this is _not_ good…"

"Did you find any other evidence?" Patton asked, watching director Hill order men around on the screen.

"I'm running a few other tests right now on the floorboard mats of the truck and samples from the seats. Hopefully I get a few hits to help everyone out."

"Dude, do you _see_ this? Hill has got Gregorio and the team covering the back of the building. Why aren't they in there?"

"Maybe Hill wants to keep an eye on them," Sebastian shrugged, scratching his chin. "Do you think he knows something?"

"If he does, who could have told him? I wouldn't put it passed the guy though, he's pretty slick. It'll be a miracle if we all get out of this without a scratch."

Sebastian nodded. "Especially LaSalle."

…

"We need to park a couple blocks away and walk onto the scene, hide behind somethin'," Pride was explaining to Sonja as he parked the vehicle.

"Oh, yeah, that won't look suspicious at _all,"_ she grumbled, head aching. "Why can't we just drive up on it and stay in the car?"

"There's no way. After further thought, I forgot that they'll have the streets blocked off. The only way to get there is by foot."

"Fine. If that's the only way then I'll do it," she nodded, stepping out and onto the sidewalk.

Pride raised a brow.

"Don't ya mean, _'we'?"_

Sonja sighed, hands in her pockets.

"You and I both know once I show up on the scene Hill will have me arrested. I'm not going to take you down with me."

"You've got to be kidding," he remarked, walking up to meet her. "I thought when we started all this we said we're in it together. Am I wrong? Isn't that what we agreed to?"

"Maybe so, but I have the right to go back on our agreement, Pride. Chris is my husband and we vowed till death do us part. _I've_ got to end this."

Pride gave a solemn smile and took her by the shoulders like he'd done a thousand times before.

"Let's get one thing straight, my dear. You and Christopher are my family. This _team_ is my family, and family doesn't give up on each other. I'm goin' with you whether you like it or not. We're all gonna end this _together,_ you hear me?"

"But-''

"Hey! No 'but's.' We all knew what it meant to sign on for this and we're gonna see it through. So. How about we go get LaSalle back?"

Sonja pressed her lips into a line that eventually spread into smile.

"Let's do it."

…

"Sir, we have visual on a man in a back room. Permission to proceed?"

"Yes, proceed with caution men. Shoot to kill if necessary," Hill responded, switching on all channels on his walkie.

"Okay everyone, get ready for possible gun fire. Suspect spotted. I need all channels on and ready to communicate."

Gregorio heard the message loud and clear through her walkie strapped to her hip, as she white-knuckled her gun. With the flick of a switch, she completed the order from the director.

"Stay alert," she ordered to her team, making sure everyone was on their toes.

An eerie silence fell over the auto-body shop as everyone awaited the sound of crackling gunfire.

Inside the shop, the team in pursuit kicked down the door to the room on the count of three. The man sitting at the desk gasped in fright, flinging his arms in the air in surrender.

"Don't shoot! Don't shoot!" he screamed, falling to the ground as an agent yanked him out of his chair and onto the ground, pressing his hands onto his back.

"Where is Agent LaSalle?" The FBI agent on top of him demanded. "You have guns from all direction pointed on you Son, tell me where Agent LaSalle is located!"

"I don't know who that is! I didn't do anything, I swear!" the young man began to cry. "Please don't kill me!"

An agent took to the walkie and relayed the info.

"Sir, we have a Caucasian male here about eighteen to twenty-five years of age. Does this match the description of either suspect?"

Gregorio, hearing this, raised a brow.

"There's no way that's Livingston or Jameson," she muttered confusedly.

"Ask him what he does there," Hill ordered.

"Do you work here?" the agent asked, still clasping the boy's hands to his back.

"Yes, this is my dad's business. This is my dad's!" he shrieked, tears pouring down his face.

"Who's your dad?"

"Charlie. Charlie Jameson," he sniffled.

"Did your father come to work today?"

"Yeah, uh- I think he's in one of the garages in the back. He says he needed to work on a truck."

" _Go!_ " the agent instructed his men, making gestures to pursue the posterior of the building.

The agent took to his walkie again.

"I need this boy detained for the time being. Still in pursuit of both suspects. We're currently in pursuit."

As another agent rushed into the room and took the boy into custody, the agent joined up with his team who were nearing the back of the building which was a four-car garage, all doors closed.

"Do you see anything, men? Do we have visual?" Hill shouted into the walkie, sweat drenching his two hundred dollar dress shirt.

"We have visual! I repeat, we have visual!"

…

"What? Is this right?" Sebastian baffled, analyzing one of his samples.

"Man, I don't know what the heck is goin' on down there but there seems to be a lot of commotion between Hill and his team outside. Everyone is running around."

"Oh my God," Sebastian mumbled, completely ignoring Patton's play-by-play.

"What are you up to over there? What did you find?" Patton questioned, pulling himself away from the display at Sebastian's odd demeanor. "What's up?"

"I'm reviewing one of the samples I found on LaSalle's floor board, and it came back as a result for a specific ingredient found in… _dynamite._ "

Patton blinked. "I'm sorry, _back up_. Did you just say 'dynamite'?"

"TNT, nitroglycerin, trinitrotoluene, _whatever_ you want to call it," Sebastian nodded. "It's dynamite."

"Well, hell! We gotta call Gregorio and let her know that place is loaded!"

"Right! I'll call her right now!"

Sebastian grabbed his phone and had her dialed in under a few seconds.

"Can this day get any worse?" Patton sighed, rubbing his face.

"I really wish you wouldn't say things like that…"

…

"Okay, here it is. I think we should stand behind this tree for the time being," Pride instructed, as Sonja had the urge to run up and join Director Hill on the scene.

"I can't see anything over here, Dwayne. We need to get closer."

"If we get any closer we will be in direct sight and that'll be that!"

"What's going on over there? Why is everyone running around?" Sonja asked, her eyes glued on the director. "What's he saying?"

"I don't have one clue. Why don't I call Patton so he can tell us what he's been seeing on the security cameras? For all we know, they may be close to nabbing Livingston."

"Yes! Call Patton, hurry," she nodded, her stomach twisting into knots. "Maybe he can give us some answers."

…

"Sebastian, are my ears deceiving me or did you just say ' _dynamite'?_ " Gregorio blurted, her cell phone in one hand and her gun in the other. "They just caught one suspect literally a second ago, and you want me to tell them there's dynamite?"

The agent who caught the boy now had his hands on the suspect, forcing him to the ground, hands behind his back.

"You have one second to tell me your name or I will order my men to shoot!" he demanded, close to the suspect's ear.

"Charlie! I'm Charlie, please God help me," the older man sobbed. "I didn't want to help him! He made me! He was going to kill my family, oh _God…"_

"We have Jameson, I repeat, we have Jameson," another agent announced into the walkie.

"Where is Lawrence Livingston, Charlie? Help us and maybe we can make a deal," the agent baited him, his knee digging into Jameson's back.

"He's in my office! He's in my office in the back. I swear, I swear," he cried.

"Go, go, go!" the agent ordered his team. "Proceed with extreme caution, men! Livingston may be armed and dangerous!"

"Does he have an Agent LaSalle with him, Charlie? Is he holding LaSalle?" the agent ordered, coming close to Jameson's ear once more.

"The guy is an _agent?_ He's a _cop?_ Oh _God!"_ hesobbed into the concrete floor.

"Take him," the agent ordered as he armed himself to rejoin his team.

…

"Director, this Agent Gregorio. Director Hill, do you hear me Sir?"

"Yes, I hear you. Go."

"I have a lab report back from my men and we have confirmation of possible explosive activity Sir, tell those men to get out of there!"

"What are we talking here, Gregorio?" he hastily questioned, loosening his tie which was beginning to feel like a hand around his throat.

"Dynamite, Sir. Dynamite."

…

"Slow _down_ , Patton! I can't understand a single thing you're sayin'!" Pride exclaimed into his phone.

"Livingston is gonna blow the place up! He has dynamite, Pride!"

Sonja felt her heart drop to her knees as she heard the news over speaker phone. This was it, he's done. Chris is gone.

"Oh my God, _NO!_ ''

…

 _ **72 hours earlier…**_

The heaviness of sleep was interrupted by a pair of warm, strong arms wrapping themselves around her waist, and a broad chest pressing against her back. Soft lips landed on the crook of her neck.

"Chris," she murmured drowsily, reaching behind her head to sink her fingers into his hair.

"Hey, baby," he replied, voice low. "I'm sorry I got home so late again."

"What time is it?" she asked, the blurriness of her vision preventing her from reading her alarm clock on the dresser.

"It's three in the mornin'. Obviously a lot later than I planned on…"

"I thought you said you would be home by ten. Twelve at the latest?" she sighed, turning in his arms until they were face to face.

"I know, I know. This case has really been kickin' my butt," he smiled, nudging her nose with his own.

"The kids have barely seen you in the past two weeks. You missed family game night, you know that's their favorite."

"You're mad at me, huh?" he asked, slowly letting out his breath.

"I'm not mad, just concerned. I know you can't talk about your cases with me, but this one seems different than the other ones. It's taking all of your attention."

"Hey now, it's not takin' _all_ of my attention. What do ya want me to do? Bein' the boss is hard work. I miss you guys more than anythin'."

"Can Tammy take over some of that stuff for you? She's more than capable."

"She's takin' it on, alright. Believe me. Gregorio headed home the 'bout the same time I did."

"Okay," Sonja responded with a hint of defeat in her voice. "I get it." She placed a kiss on his shoulder and turned back around to face the wall.

She heard her husband sigh as he readjusted their pillows and propped himself up on an elbow.

"Are you _sure_ you're not mad at me?"

"I'm sure. Your team needs you, I understand. You should get some rest."

"Sonja," he whispered, brushing her hair away from her face, "You and the kids are my team, too. I would _never_ put NCIS before my family."

"Honey," she replied, sitting up to face him, "It's not about putting us first or your team. It's about finding a healthy balance between the _both_ of them. Does that make sense? That's all I want you to do, Chris."

"Okay. I'm sorry. I'm gonna try to do better."

"I know it's a lot," she continued, taking his face into her hands. "Being a boss, a father, and a husband must not be easy. You have a lot on your plate. I just want you to see my perspective."

"I see it," he nodded, turning his head to kiss her palm. "I need to be home more. I'm gonna work on that first."

"The kids are on summer vacation and want to spend time with the both of us. I told them I'll try and make that happen. Once school starts back up again, everything can go back to normal. You'll be running NCIS and I'll be cleaning the house listening to my seventies music," she smiled, dropping her hands to rub his arms. "We just want a _little_ time with you."

"You're gonna get more than a little, I promise you that." LaSalle leaned in and took her into an embrace, causing Sonja to fall on top of him. She laughed.

"What would I do without you?" he smiled, kissing her cheek. "I'm so damn lucky you're mine."

"I know." She returned his grin, pressing her forehead against his own. "I'm lucky, too. But you _really_ need to get some rest. You have another early morning tomorrow."

"Okay, let's get some rest."

LaSalle sat the both of them up and pulled the covers back as the pair cuddled up underneath them, Sonja decidedly resting her cheek upon his chest.

"How 'bout we go to the park this weekend? It's supposed to be pretty hot, we can take the kids to the pool?" he asked, his fingers running up and down her spine.

"I thought you had a meeting to go to this weekend?"

" _Pshh_ , what meetin'?" he smirked, kissing her head. "I can pull a few strings. I _am_ the boss after all, right?"

"The kids will love that! It's a great idea. We haven't been to the park in ages."

"Who knows, maybe Pride might even watch the kiddo's that night so we can go on a date."

"A _date?_ What is that?" she laughed, rubbing her tired eyes.

"A place where no children are allowed that involves food and kissin' on each other," he replied, his laughter shaking his ribcage.

"Sounds like my kind of place."

"Yeah, but if I'm honest, _any_ place that has you in it is fine by me. The zoo, a swanky restaurant, the park, you name it- all I need is you."

"Aw," she sighed, pinching his arm. "How could I ever be mad at you when you say stuff like that?"

"So ya _were_ mad! I knew it," he chuckled, patting her on the behind. "I always know when you're mad."

"You also know how to make me _not_ mad, and that's a good skill to have."

"Mhm, I sure do. I could try out one of my special skills, right now if you'd like…"

"Chris," she grinned, as he flipped her onto her back, "I thought you said we were going to rest?"

"We will," he replied as he took her wrists and placed them above her head. "Right after this."

…

 _Boom…Boom…Boom_

"What was that?" Sebastian mumbled, hearing the sound rumble through his phone call with Gregorio and seeing smoke cover the auto-body shop on the screen in his lab.

Gregorio hung up, smoke immediately engulfing her and her team like a deadly fog. Gasping, she brought her walkie to her lips.

"Is everybody alright? Do we have men down?"

"Move, move, move!" Hill ordered the rest of his teams into the building to assess the damage and locate the missing team. Shortly after that, the roof began to cave in.

"We have men down! I repeat, we have men down! We need medical assistance!" an agent called over his walkie, voice being drown out by commotion.

"Do we have eyes on Livingston? We cannot let him escape!" Hill fiercely yelled.

Suddenly, the long-awaited sounds of gunfire rang out, quickly grabbing everyone's attention.

…

"We have to go in there!" Sonja screamed, Pride holding her back as her body thrashed in his grip. "Chris needs us!"

A minute later, flames began wafting out of the windows of the shop. Not long after that, an ambulance and fire truck arrived.

"Where is Livingston? I need a visual men, _please_!" Hill's voice was beginning to sound desperate.

With no response, he rolled up his sleeves and bent down to rest his palms on his knees, head hung low. Emergency medical teams breezed past him.

"Let me go!" Sonja shouted, shoving Pride away with all her might until she was free, flying across the street and onto the scene.

"This _can't_ be it," she exclaimed, somehow making her way within proximity of Hill. "We have to do something!"

Pride was on her heels the entire way, wrapping his arms under hers for support.

Hill flipped around, eyes wide.

"Mrs. LaSalle? _Pride?_ What on Earth are you-''

"Sir!" a young agent of the FBI interrupted the awkward reunion, as he stood nose to nose with the director. "I've received a report that the building and surrounding sheds on the property are clear. The suspect is on the run."

Director Hill, hesitantly ripping his eyes away from Pride and Sonja, addressed the man.

"On the _run?_ How far could he possibly get with a hostage who is most likely injured?"

"I don't know, Director. We're canvassing the area as we speak."

…

"Suspect is on the run! Everyone, eyes open!" a voice rang over the walkie.

Gregorio groaned as she stomped her foot with impatience.

"Screw this, man," she scoffed, throwing her head back. "The director and the whole damn FBI can push us out all they want, but I just can't stand here like some _moron_ for the next two seconds." She gestured to her team. "Let's spilt up. I'll go this way and you guys take the other. We're not callin' it quits until LaSalle is safe."

"Livingston could be trying to use the fire as a smokescreen for a clean getaway," one of the NCIS agents commented, gun held high and ready to shoot. "He can be anywhere by now."

"Maybe so, but I bet he won't get far. Let's move."

…

"Sir, the explosions did quite a number on our teams. Most of my guys are injured and are unable to pursue. I have received word that Gregorio and her team from NCIS are closing in."

" _Gregorio?_ I thought I told her to-" the director sighed, shaking his head. "Never mind. Do we have a location on her team?"

"They've moved about a block down the neighborhood. We have no visual."

"Someone call Patton!" Sonja exclaimed, yet again escaping Pride's grip. "He can hack security cameras all over this neighborhood. Maybe he can even see Livingston himself."

Hill opened his mouth to yell obscenities Sonja's way but decidedly clamped his mouth shut, eyes shooting daggers. He turned to his man.

"Contact Patton and fill him in on the situation. Have him patch any visual to my laptop, understood?"

"Understood, Sir!"

The agent quickly grabbed a phone and began performing what he was instructed to do.

Pride cleared his throat and stepped forward, reaching out for the director.

"Director, I promise you there is an explanation regarding Sonja and I-"

"Oh, I'm sure of it agent Pride," Hill scoffed, hands on his hips. "I can't _wait_ to hear it."

…

"At first I wasn't seein' anything, but when I hacked into a camera three blocks from the scene, I think I got something!" Patton hollered, transferring the information to Hill's computer screen in real time. "I mean, I _know_ I got something!"

"Is it Chris? Did you find him?" Sebastian exclaimed, nearly slipping and falling as he crossed the laboratory floor to Patton.

"I can't make out the faces, but it's definitely two adult males attempting to break into a car. One of them is in rough shape. The whole time I've been watchin' this go down he's been slumped against the car and the other dude is shaking him. I don't like this, Sebastian."

"Gregorio better get there quick or Livingston will have that car started! LaSalle will be gone for good, and I don't think it will be easy to find him for the second time. We won't have a chance."

"Bro, if there even _is_ a second time, it won't be a rescue mission," Patton replied, heart heavy. "We'll just be recovering a body."

…

Beads of sweat traveled down the back of Gregorio's neck as she and her team approached the street that supposedly held Livingston and LaSalle. The director himself informed her on the situation, and pressed that timing was of the essence, as though that had yet to occur to her. Thankfully, to keep the area under control, stray FBI agents were to go to the back door of every residence and explain what was currently in motion. As a result, the neighborhood was eerily quiet. Step by step, with her heart thudding in her ears, the weight of possible outcomes began to weigh heavy on her. The moment Livingston spotted her he could plant a bullet straight into LaSalle's head. If her team got spooked and fired their weapons, he could use LaSalle as a shield. _Hell,_ LaSalle might already be dead! Gregorio was biting her lip, the faint taste of blood on her tongue. She hadn't put her badge on the line to come out of this empty handed. Sonja and her friends hadn't put in every ounce of their energy for her to mess this up for them. People were depending on her now, especially Vivian and Max. Those kids deserved to have their daddy come home safe and sound and heal together as a family. Her palms began to sweat as she grasped to hang onto her gun. This was a moment in time that would define her or ruin her… it was a coin toss as to which.

Gregorio crouched behind a vehicle, head slightly peeking out to assess the scene. After hour after excruciating hour, her eyes _finally_ landed on a familiar face covered in cuts and bruises. His hair was coated in dried up blood. She felt her heart skip a beat. _LaSalle!_ If only she could let him know how close she was. His eyes were closed as he sat leaning against the car Livingston was in the middle of hot-wiring. His usual attire of a Henley shirt and jeans were dirty and tattered. He appeared unresponsive.

" _Go,"_ Gregorio mouthed to her teammates who were scattered throughout the street, ducked behind vehicles. _"Follow my lead. Don't shoot."_

A monstrous growl rolled through the air, causing Gregorio and her team to stop in their tracks.

"This is taking _too_ long!" a harsh male voice bellowed, slamming his fist into the car. "If we can't get out of here then I'll just have to change plans and kill you now, instead." Livingston swirled on his heel, bending down and taking ahold of LaSalle's cheeks in one hand. "I know, it's not ideal. However, you haven't got much of choice Agent LaSalle."

Gregorio was taken aback by the character known as Mr. Livingston she's heard countless stories about. Besides being covered in dirt, his appearance was completely accurate. His jet black hair was now sprinkled with gray near the crown, slightly frazzled as it hung over his mischievous eyes. His pen striped suit still contained his signature silk pocket square. His shiny black dress shoes had a few scuffs, but this was _him_. Lawrence Livingston in the flesh.

"Give it up, Livingston. I know ya ain't gonna kill me," LaSalle scoffed, almost egging him on. His head rolled slowly to face the criminal, Livingston still holding his face between his fingers. LaSalle paused, licking his cracked lips. "You and I both know you'll keep me alive long enough to torture me until I'm dead. Ain't that what this has been?"

"Time is obviously not on my _side,_ Christopher," Mr. Livingston sneered, roughly pushing away LaSalle's face, "Otherwise I would be doing just that."

"What do ya mean, time?" LaSalle laughed, his voice suddenly turning into a deep cough after a second or two. "You've been runnin' this whole _thing._ You're in control, Livingston. You better make your next move."

"Would you _shut up_?" he hissed, swiftly kicking LaSalle in his side. The agent buckled, grasping his kidney with slow breaths, eyes closed.

"Your little friends will be here any minute," Livingston continued, ignoring LaSalle's anguish. "If I don't kill you now, they'll kill _me._ Now, what kind of reward would that be after all the trouble I went through to get you?"

"You don't get any award for stealin' a man from his family," LaSalle mumbled, squinting towards the sky. "People like you get what they deserve."

"A _jail_ won't hold me, Mr. LaSalle," Livingston cackled, ducking back into the car. "No matter where they put me, I'll plan my escape. And after that, I'll find you. I have people who will _help_ me find you. There is no way out of this one, Agent LaSalle. Your sweet partner can't bail you out now. _You're mine."_

"Put your hands up, scum bag!" Gregorio exclaimed as she and her team surrounded the men and the vehicle, weapons ready to fire. "Let me see your hands, Livingston! Turn around! _Slowly!"_

"Well, well, well," he snickered, his head still inside the vehicle. "Another woman come to rescue you. Why am I not surprised?"

"Cut the chit-chat Livingston and turn around! Hands up!" Gregorio ordered, finger on the trigger.

"Gregorio," LaSalle softly muttered, "I think he has a-''

" _Gun!"_ the men on the team hollered, as Livingston swung around bearing a pistol pointed directly into LaSalle's brain.

"Take one step closer agents and I'll be _thrilled_ to fill your precious LaSalle with as many bullets as possible," he smirked, poking LaSalle with the weapon to prove his point.

"Whoa, calm down, okay?" Gregorio insisted, lowering her gun. "Let's not do anything hasty here, alright?"

"I don't see your men lowering their weapons," Livingston frowned, pulling back the hammer.

"Hey! Okay!" the men responded, lowering their weapons and taking a step backwards.

"Perfect," he sneered.

"Just give us LaSalle and we'll let you go. You have my word we won't follow you," Gregorio proposed, placing a hand over her heart. "I'll get on my walkie right now and call off the FBI, too. Just give us LaSalle."

"Don't do it," LaSalle interjected, getting his head hit with the butt of the gun.

"Shut up!" Livingston yelled, grasping LaSalle by his collar. "Don't you say another word! The moment you stepped foot in my life, you ruined _everything!_ This isn't over until I tie up loose ends."

"Lawrence, _please,_ " Gregorio softly interrupted, trying not to set him off. "You can walk away from this, okay? You can walk away without a scratch. Give us our guy and you're free. No jail, no nothin'. Let him go."

LaSalle locked eyes with her as new blood spilled down his forehead. Livingston was holding tight onto his collar as his hazel eyes begged for help.

"What if I don't?" Livingston flippantly asked, smugly shrugging his shoulders. "What are you going to _do,_ agent? Shoot me? If you shoot me, I shoot _him._ We'll both be dead."

"I'm going to give you one more chance, which is more than I should," Gregorio contested, holstering her weapon. Her teammates exchanged confused glances. "Let LaSalle go. Now."

Livingston stood in silence as time began to melt into slow motion. Gregorio saw LaSalle slipping in and out of consciousness. The sun was burning a hole into her back. Her mouth had gone dry, and her senses were on full alert. Finally, a voice jarred her, and she felt her body fling itself across the yard, her arms reaching forward. She faintly heard her own screaming in the background, and Livingston saying:

" _No."_

…

"I had two males on screen with Gregorio and her team surrounding them, now I've lost visual!" Hill bellowed at surrounding agents. "Someone call Patton and tell him to get me another angle!"

"Two males? Do you think its Chris and Livingston?" Sonja gasped, her pulse racing.

 _ **Crack. Crack. Crack, crack.**_

Everyone suddenly held their breath.

"What was that?" Sonja whispered, nails digging into Pride's arm. "Was that-''

"Gunshots," he breathed, head twisting in the direction of the sound.

"Close-range shots fired!" Hill yelled into his walkie. "Can I get a confirmation they are from the scene of the suspect? I have lost visual!"

No response.

Director Hill shoved his laptop further across the hood of his vehicle and brought his hands to face, pacing.

"Dwayne," Sonja choked, turning around to face him, "What do we do?"

"Oh, sweetheart," he sighed, bringing her in to rest her head beneath his chin. "I am so sorry."

"Sir, do you copy?" an unfamiliar male voice rang through the walkie. "We need immediate medical assistance on the scene. We have several injuries. We also have a body."

Hill stood in shock, eyes wide, before he picked up the device while motioning to medical teams.

"We have medical assistance on the way. Stand by. Is subject detained?" Hill's voice was eerily calm as everyone awaited an answer.

"Subject is no longer a threat, Sir."

Sonja felt her body go limp as sobs shook her core. Pride attempted to gather her up, but was unsuccessful.

"Thank God," she cried, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"What condition is Agent LaSalle in? And Gregorio and her team?" Hill continued, his stance uptight.

"Undetermined, Sir. I'm sorry."

" _Undetermined?"_ Sonja yelled, hotly making her way toward the director. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Mrs. LaSalle, please," the director wearily replied, holding up a hand. "You and Agent Pride are on a short leash with me after this stunt you're pulling, so I would appreciate if you didn't take that tone-''

"Take me to the scene. Now." Sonja's voice was direct, and her eye contact unwavering. "I need to be there."

"You're not even supposed to be _here!"_

"Come on, Director," Pride spoke, calmly approaching them. "We've come this far, and we _will_ answer for that. Just get Sonja one step closer, I'm beggin' you. It's her husband."

Hill crossed his arms, foot urgently tapping. He let out a long breath, head lolling backward.

"Fine," he replied, making eye contact with the has-been agents. "I'll hold you to your word on that, Pride. But for now, I'll take both of you with me. Let's go."

…

The scene was frenzied as FBI and NCIS vehicles advanced upon the small neighborhood. Ambulances and medical teams blanketed the area, and Sonja's eyes immediately fell upon a medical responder zipping up a body bag. Her emotions ran high as she jumped out of the vehicle the second it crept to a halt. An FBI agent was hastily roping off the crime scene with tape, as Sonja hurtled toward him.

"I need to get through here. I'm LaSalle's wife," she ordered on tip-toes, eyes sweeping over the sea of people. "I need to get in here, please!"

"I'm sorry, Ma'am," the man replied. "I'm on strict orders to keep out civilians."

"Step aside, agent," a deep voice announced, causing Sonja to jolt. Director Hill was suddenly at her side, holding up his badge. "This woman and man have clearance." He gestured to Sonja and Pride.

The agent nodded, lifting the tape and standing aside.

Sonja locked eyes with Pride before she took off, her heart in her throat.

"Chris!" she bellowed, bumping shoulders with various people. "Tammy! Chris!"

She grabbed hold of a medical responder who had blood up to his elbows.

"Excuse me, do you know Agent LaSalle? Agent Gregorio? Do you know where I can find them?"

"I- I'm sorry, I don't know who that is-''

"Who have you treated? Who's in the ambulances?"

"Uh- I just treated a woman. She has a bullet wound in her shoulder. Her partners had a few abrasions obtained in the scuffle, I believe."

"You treated her? How is she?"

"There was a good amount of blood-loss but she's going to pull through. She should be heading to the nearest hospital any minute."

"And the man. Where is the man?" she pressed, clinging to the medical personnel. "What happened to him?"

"We had a deceased person on site, a man," he replied, sweat running down his brow. "I never treated a man."

"Okay, okay. Thank you," Sonja spat, releasing him and continuing her journey for LaSalle.

Every corner she turned, every agent she questioned, seemed to come to a dead end. As minutes passed, Sonja grew frantic in realization of losing sight of Pride and Director Hill.

"Sonja! Sonja!"

Her ears perked at the sound of a male calling her name from afar, but she couldn't pinpoint who it was.

Suddenly, a pair of strong hands took her by the shoulders.

"Chris!" she screeched, flipping around.

"No, honey," Pride replied. "I'm not Christopher."

Sonja's excitement fell to despair.

"Don't give up hope, just yet," he smiled. "Patton and Sebastian have been combing through security cameras and they found him. I'm here to take ya to him."

…

Sonja was in a dream sequence. The yells and the chattering turned into a dull hum as Pride coaxed her step, after wobbly step. Her bones were made of jello. Her eyesight melded into tunnel vision. She knew Pride was whispering something in her ear, but she couldn't make out exactly what he was trying to say. Her sweat ran cold.

All of a sudden, a woman in medical clothing stopped them in their path.

"Excuse me, are you Mrs. LaSalle? Are you the wife of the male in critical care?"

"I-uh, yes, I'm-'' Sonja was beginning to feel faint as Pride stepped in.

"Yes, this is her. I'm Agent Pride. If you could lead the way to him, we'd sure be really grateful."

"Of course. Come this way," the woman nodded, ushering them towards an ambulance.

"Are you fit to receive medical information on your husband, Ma'am?" she asked, eyes etched with worry. She glanced at Pride. "I believe Mrs. LaSalle may be suffering from shock. We should get her checked out."

"No," Sonja quickly replied, shakily touching her arm. "I'm fine. Please take me to him and tell me what we're dealing with."

"I'm not one-hundred percent convinced," the woman warned, "but I can have my team check your vitals afterwards. Let's go see your husband now."

Pride never left Sonja's side as the trio approached the ambulance as personnel made room for the new arrivals. Looking into the vehicle, Sonja laid eyes on a man seriously battered and bloodied, his body being strapped to a gurney. He was hooked up to various machines, with an oxygen mask covering his mouth. His neck was in a brace.

"Oh, _God! Chris."_

"Mrs. LaSalle, wait-''

It was too late for conversation as Sonja broke free from Pride and leaped into the vehicle, adrenaline taking over. Pushing several people out of the way, she finally made it to LaSalle's side, delicately placing her palm over his heart.

"What did he do to you?" she softly cried, registering a faint thudding beneath her hand. With swollen eyes and so much blood covering his head, Christopher LaSalle was barely recognizable.

"He isn't awake, Mrs. LaSalle," a woman's voice spoke from behind her. Sonja turned her head.

"Is he-" Sonja roughly swallowed, "going to make it?"

"We're unable to give you a full medical report at this time, but we're fairly certain he sustained a concussion at some point. As for broken bones and internal damage, we'll have to get a CT scan at the hospital as well as a full physical evaluation. For now we're supplying him with oxygen, medicine and fluids. He's in an induced coma. Your husband has a long road of recovery ahead of him."

"Can I go with him to the hospital?" Sonja sniffled, taking a seat on the bench beside him. "I don't want him to wake up alone."

"Of course you can," the woman smiled. "I've heard from Agent Pride you've been waiting for this moment for a long time. In times like this, these are the moments I look forward to."

Sonja let out a slow breath and reached for LaSalle's hand. Intertwining their fingers, she felt herself release a laugh.

"Yes. Oh, yes. It's been a long time."

…

 _ **1 week later…**_

"How are you feeling? Do you want me to help you sit up?"

"Nah, baby. I got it."

The LaSalle's had spent the last week of their lives in a small hospital room, and were undoubtedly staying there for the near future.

LaSalle slowly but surely sat himself up in bed and motioned for his wife to join him, as he scooted over to make room.

"How many times have the nurses told you to not do this?" she smiled, shaking her head as she climbed in next to him.

"Ah, who cares?" he grinned. "Watch out for my cords though. Don't want those rippin' out."

"Chris," she sighed, snuggling into his chest.

"What's wrong, Sonja?" he asked, resting his chin on her head. "I know this situation ain't ideal, but we don't have much of a choice. Livingston did me in good."

"We all have that meeting with Director Hill today, that's what. I don't know what to say…"

"You tell him you saved my life," he whispered, kissing her head. "I would be dead without you. I'll tell him that myself."

"You'll probably get your chance. Pride texted me and said we're all meeting in this hospital room in the next hour."

"Well, then," LaSalle shrugged. "I guess we'll get it over with."

"Are you sure you're up for it? You still have your concussion to worry about. You also have a few broken bones and a lot of swelling. Not to mention we _finally_ have your vitals back on a normal level, and that's not the end of it."

"Of course I'm up for it. If Hill is tryin' to condemn my team and throw my wife in jail, hell yes I'm up for it!"

"Okay," Sonja exasperatedly replied. "I won't stop you."

"The sooner we get all the legal mumbo-jumbo taken of, the sooner I see my kids," he grinned, eyes growing bright. "I haven't seen them in so long."

"They sat in here with me while you were asleep for the first few days," she smiled. "They were so worried about you. I almost didn't let them see you in that condition, but Vivian begged me. She missed her daddy."

"What story are we usin' to explain this?" he sighed, gesturing to the monitors.

"I told them you got hurt on your work trip. I didn't want to go into any detail."

"Alright then." LaSalle gathered his wife into his arms, and his soreness melted away.

Silence fell upon the couple as the sun began to peek from behind the clouds, filling the room with light. Sonja's eyes wandered to a vase filled with an elegant floral arrangement sitting in the corner of the room. She spotted a white card attached to a yellow bow.

"Chris, who are those flowers from?"

He didn't need to look over his shoulder to come up with a response.

"Oh, you'll _love_ this one," he snickered, patting her back. "There was no specific name on the card, but all it says is, " _Thank you. J._ "

"J?" Sonja wrinkled her brow. "As in- Jan Livingston?"

"Looks like it. I guess she saw the news and wanted to send us a message!"

"Wow," she commented, eyes wide. "That's nice. It's just so unbelievable how much she's changed! You probably wouldn't even recognize her. Inside _and_ out."

"I don't much matter to me," he smiled. "I'm just grateful she came to her senses and helped track down Livingston for good. That was a big thing she did."

"It really was. I'm proud of her."

"And I'm proud of _you_ , Sonja," he gently replied. "So many things could have happened. I'm just glad we didn't have to find out how to live without each other."

"Why is it every time Livingston gets involved, one of us almost dies and ends up in the hospital?"

"I know," he nodded. "Kind of like a cruel full-circle moment, wasn't it?"

"Did he say why he took you, Chris? Did he tell you his motive?"

"I haven't told ya everythin' that happened in that auto-body shop," he explained, "I'm just not ready to. That'll take time. All I kept hearin' from him is that I ruined everything and had to die. I don't know the motive, exactly."

Sonja turned his head towards her and placed a kiss on his forehead.

"It's okay, I'm in no hurry. I'm just glad _here._ You're safe. That's all I need. I love you."

" _Boy_ , do I love you too."

…

"Glad you could all join me today," Hill announced, clearing his throat. "I will make you all aware before we get started that this conversation is being recorded."

"What's the news on Jameson? He gettin' released?" Gregorio butt in, her curiosity halting the proceedings.

"No. Charlie Jameson has been booked on several counts, some including aiding and embedding as well as accessory to commit murder. He won't be enjoying any sort of freedom any time soon."

"Geez, that's good to hear," Sebastian mumbled, relieved Livingston's right-hand man wouldn't be haunting the streets of New Orleans.

"Now, if everyone is appeased, we can get down to business," said Hill.

"We're all crammed in here like sardines, man," Patton groaned, commenting on the size of the hospital room. "Can't we save this nonsense until the boss is outta here? Shouldn't he be resting?"

"This 'nonsense' you are referring to, could land the lot of you in a federal prison," Hill deadpanned, crossing his arms. "You all should consider yourself lucky you haven't been detained."

"Lawrence Livingston is dead and LaSalle and the rest of our team is intact. Why isn't that enough for you? Haven't we all been through enough?" Gregorio proposed, her arm propped up in a sling to hold her shoulder steady.

"This case isn't closed until I receive full statements from all parties involved," the director instructed, leaning against the window sill. "I will keep everyone in this room until I get the full truth."

"You're only doing this because of me," Sonja piped in, stepping away from LaSalle's bedside. "I'll tell you everything you need to know. Don't persecute these people for my wrong-doing."

"Come on, now, Sonja," Pride sighed, stepping forward. "It's just as much of my fault as it is yours, maybe even more. I'm sure the FBI is familiar with my reputation for going around the law."

"You're right, Pride," Hill nodded. "We've been keeping detailed records on you ever since Gregorio joined the team. We thought you would bow out gracefully when you handed in your badge and retired, but I guess we were wrong."

"You can't do this," LaSalle interjected, sitting up too quickly and wincing. "These people are my family. They only wanted me to come home safe."

"These people went behind the backs of the FBI. These people defied _specific_ orders," Hill responded, pacing around the room. "Someone has to answer for this. That's how the world works."

"Do you have any proof?" Gregorio questioned, rising to her feet. "You have no ground to stand on without proof."

"Funny you should ask," the director chuckled, squeezing the bridge of his nose between his fingers. "It seems the hard-drive on Patton's computer at headquarters had been completely wiped clean. Same with Sebastian's at his lab."

"Phone records?" Gregorio continued, hand on her hip.

"Squeaky clean as well." The director's mouth was pressed in a thin line, his hand making a fist at his side.

"Then it doesn't matter what you think we did," she said. "There's nothin' to talk about."

"At this very moment, my men are arduously looking into each of your bank accounts, credit cards, passports, and we _won't_ stop there until we have something. Give up the information now, and maybe we can make a deal."

The team glanced around the room, with the actual truth weighing heavily on their shoulders, their mouths clamped shut.

"It was my fault," Sebastian spoke, all heads whipping his direction. "Getting Sonja and Pride to the scene was all me. I admit to it."

"Nah, man! It was me," Patton exclaimed, poking himself in the chest. "Lay all the charges on me. Sebastian is just tryin' to cover for me."

"Both of you are lying," Gregorio dramatically sighed. "It was me. I lead Sonja and Pride to the scene. It was the least I could do for them. Sebastian and Patton had no idea what I was doin'. They're covering for me."

"No, no, no," Pride piped in. The director's eyes were bugging out of his head. "I called Gregorio a while back and made her promise to take Sonja and me to the scene whenever Christopher was found. She was only following through for me. The boy's had no idea we had a deal. Everyone is just coverin' for me. Like I said earlier, pin it on me. Case closed."

"Dwayne," Sonja exhaled. "You know you only called Gregorio because I made you. All of this is happening because of me. I jeopardized the entire team because of my grief, and I can never make that up to you all. I'm so sorry. They're covering for _me_."

"You'll have to arrest all of us, Hill," Gregorio smirked. "I'm not sure how good that would look for you, considering the FBI just _gallantly_ rescued the head of our NCIS team, and took out the assailant single-handedly, but it's totally up to you. Ball's in your court."

" _Enough_."

Hill's voice was sturdy and filled with frustration.

"I don't know what kind of game you're all playing at, but I promise you, I'll figure it out. Until then, I'll privately take each of your statements and I'll be on my way." The director turned to LaSalle. "Get well soon."

Breezing out the door with his recorder in hand, the team exchanged amused looks and waited for the door to close entirely before erupting in laughter.

"How did that actually work?" Sebastian eyes were alit with amazement. "We didn't even practice that! There wasn't even a script!"

"You kiddin' me, Sebastian?" Gregorio winked. "We're professionals."

"Do you think Hill's team is gonna rake up some dirt on all of us?" Patton mused, scratching his head. "That sounded like a definite threat, to me!"

"If he does, then we'll worry about it then. If I'm not mistaken, you guys have a pretty slick clean-up job if I don't recall?" Pride smiled, a hand in his pocket.

Sebastian blushed.

"Well… _yeah._ I guess you could say that."

"I can't believe the FBI stole credit for what went down," LaSalle groaned, shaking his head. "Sonja was the one who found me in this big mess and Gregorio took a bullet in the shoulder that was meant for my head! It just ain't right!"

"Hey, it doesn't matter who took credit," Gregorio consoled, patting his leg. "They can keep the fame as far as I'm concerned, if it means the scent is off our tails. I'd rather just head back to work."

" _Really?_ I was figurin' on givin' you some time off! We've been swamped with cases, you know?" LaSalle chuckled.

"Oh, no, Boss. Work is exactly what I need right now. It's the best form of therapy there is! Not to mention good ole' NCIS headquarters coffee. Can't beat that."

LaSalle took hold of Sonja's hand, a glow finding its way onto his cheeks.

"Then I hope ya'll don't mind if I take some time off to spend with my family. Its summer vacation, and the kids need their daddy!"

"Dude, you'd be crazy if you didn't take time off," Patton laughed. "After all the blood loss, broken bones, and dehydration, you need some R&R!"

"Thanks for remindin' me of all that, pal," LaSalle winked.

"You're not going to quit are you?" Sebastian gasped, always leaping to conclusions. "What if you spend so much time away you realize work is too dangerous and quit! Oh no, I don't know if I can handle something like that-''

Gregorio gave him a good shove. "Would you cut it out? Why do you always make everything about you? Let the man rest. Okay?"

"I'm sorry, you're right," he nodded, collecting himself. "Totally overreacting."

Pride draped a supportive arm around the younger man's shoulders.

"I think its high time we give the LaSalle's some privacy, hm?" he grinned, beaming at Chris and Sonja. "I'm sure Director Hill is anxious to get on with these interviews."

"Yeah, I volunteer to go first. Triple P is a good ice breaker." Patton flashed a toothy grin, dusting off his shoulders. "Sebastian, you should roll with me too. See you guys around!"

"That's a good idea, considering you drove me here." Sebastian nodded at his logic. "We'll catch up with you guys later! Get better LaSalle!"

"Thanks Patton," Sonja waved as he exited the room. "Thank you Sebastian."

"I should head outta here too," Gregorio softly smiled, eyeing the door. "I got interviews to take, bad guys to catch, paperwork to fill out. A typical day in the life."

"Don't work too hard, Tammy." Sonja was careful of Gregorio's sling as she gave her friend a tight hug. "I will never be able to thank you enough."

"You got that right," LaSalle added, locking eyes with his colleague. "I don't think I can ever get the image of you jumpin' on top of Livingston and the gun goin' off out of my head. You saved my life just as much as Sonja and the rest."

"Pshh," the agent shrugged, trying to avoid a display of emotions. "Don't mention it, okay? I remember all the stories about him. I'm just glad that douchebag is off the streets. He can't hurt anybody anymore."

"No, he can't," Pride smiled, patting her on her good shoulder. "You did a great job, Tammy."

"So did our team," she nodded. "It was a team effort. Oh, and I forgot to mention," she continued, looking at LaSalle, "Thanks for stallin' Livingston so we could surround the car and catch him off-guard. You really egged him on."

"I saw you guys comin' and had to create a distraction," he smiled. "Even if that meant gettin' a kick or two. I'm sittin' here talkin' to you, so it didn't turn out that bad."

"Nope. It sure didn't." Gregorio gave the group a small wave, and journeyed toward the door.

"Hold the fort down for me, okay?" LaSalle called as she opened the door. "I'll be back soon!"

"Not too soon," she replied, lip turned up into a smile.

"Well, guess I better get in line for those interviews," Pride gestured, eyes soft. "It's sure nice to see you two back together."

LaSalle stared at the man he looked to as a mentor and father, and cleared his throat before he could tear up.

"Listen, Dwayne," he began, voice low. "I know what ya did for Sonja while I was gone. She told me everythin'. You were her rock when I couldn't be, you took care of my kids. You held my family together when most would have crumbled. I will never forget that. I'll do my best to repay you someday."

"I could never turn my back on family, Christopher," the older man replied, his tone light. "I was takin' care of the people I love, plain and simple. That's all I ever try to do. There's no debt to be paid."

"Thank you," Sonja said, crossing the room to envelope him in a hug. "We love you too. Take care."

The retired agent locked eyes with his protégé turned boss and an unspoken understanding resonated between the both of them.

Sonja let him go, as he meandered to the door, taking one final look over his shoulder.

"Where do ya think you'll go now?" LaSalle asked. "What's next for the great Dwayne Pride?"

"It's hard to say, Son," he chuckled. "Hopefully my next adventure will take it easier on me. Say hi to the kiddo's for me."

LaSalle nodded, heart full.

"I will! Stay outta trouble, King."

…

"Come on, everyone, get in here. I don't think the nurses are lookin'," LaSalle chuckled, shuffling his wife and two kids into bed next to him.

"It sure was nice of Meri to bring you kids by to visit Daddy and me, wasn't it?" Sonja grinned, kissing the top of her children's heads.

"Yes, she is super nice. Is it okay if I sit on Daddy's lap?" Vivian cheered, nearly knocking her brother off the bed to get her way. Sonja quickly stopped her in her tracks.

"Sweety, Daddy isn't feeling too well to have someone sit on him. How about you take my spot and sit right next to him?"

"That means Max is going to get to sit on him," the little girl sighed, clearly unimpressed.

As if on cue, the boy clapped his hands and crawled across both the girls to reach his father. He held up his arms delightedly.

LaSalle gathered him into his lap while nestling Vivian into his side.

"Don't ya realize you get the greatest honor of all?" LaSalle grinned, eyes filled with excitement. Sonja couldn't help but smile at the scene she hoped she would be seeing after all was said and done.

Vivian appeared puzzled until a moment lapsed and she flung her arms in the air with laughter.

"I'm the storyteller! I get to hold the book!"

"That's right," he winked, eyes landing on Sonja. "Okay, Mama. Where's her book?"

"Right here," she chimed, laying the selected hardback in her daughter's hands. "I hope you don't mind tonight's reading selection."

"Oh, I don't mind!" Vivian gasped, examining the title. "This is the monster book Daddy always reads in silly voices! I love this one."

"I can't wait to hear it, my lil' firecracker," LaSalle cooed, bringing his kids closer.

"It won't be as good as you, Dad," the little girl shrugged, her brown eyes finding her father's. "You always do it so perfect!"

"You read books to Daddy while he was asleep," Sonja smiled, rubbing Vivian's cheek with the back of her hand. "You did just fine."

"It was good practice," LaSalle nodded in encouragement. "Besides, if you get stuck I'll help ya out. It'll be easy-peasy, kiddo!"

"Okay."

Vivian, sitting up with her back straight, flipped to the first page as her family anxiously awaited the story.

" _Once upon a time…_ "

…

 _ **One year later…**_

"We're gonna be late! I'm not used to all this!" LaSalle exclaimed, sliding on his socks through the kitchen. "Where are your backpacks? Do ya'll take lunches?"

"Daddy, is it your first day here?" Vivian joked, diving underneath him to reach a cabinet. "Mom puts our lunches in here once she makes them in the morning. See?" she demonstrated, shaking the lunch boxes.

"Oh okay, got it," he nodded, holding a 'thumbs up'.

"Why are you doing this instead of Mommy, anyway? Where is she?"

"She's upstairs gettin' ready, baby," he replied, scooting his daughter closer to the door to exit the house. "Please get your shoes on. I gotta find Max."

"He's probably playing Hide and Seek," Vivian laughed, bending over to fasten her sandals. "He does that when it's time to go to school."

"It's Pre-School, Max!" LaSalle hollered, "The hardest thing you'll do today is finger paintin', buddy!"

The giggling of a small boy resonated throughout the home.

"I got him," Sonja sighed, toting the small child down the stairs. "He's almost ready to go."

"Wow, Mommy!" Vivian squealed, brushing her hair away from her face. "You look so pretty!"

"Just because I put some make-up on I look so much better, huh?" the mother teased, sitting Max on the floor.

"No," Vivian rolled her eyes, "You have on nice pants and a nice shirt. Are you going somewhere special today?"

Sonja smoothed out said pants, and adjusted her cool-toned blouse. LaSalle saddled up beside her with a grin.

"I _am_ going somewhere special today! I have a job interview."

"No way! I thought you liked working at home?"

"I do, honey," Sonja smiled, poking Vivian's nose. "I think I would just have more fun doing something else. What do you think?"

"Okay," she nodded. "What is it?"

"Let's get you guys out to the car and I'll explain as we go!"

The parents took the hand of each child and lead them out the door, backpacks in tow.

"Viv, do you remember all those stories I used to tell you about when Daddy and I were just friends? When I worked at NCIS like Dad and Uncle Dwayne?"

"Mhm! I remember. That was a _long_ time ago."

Sonja popped open the door to the vehicle and lifted Vivian inside, safely fitting her into her car-seat.

"What would you think if I went back to work there?"

"Yeah, what would you think about that?" LaSalle winked. "Sounds pretty fun, right?"

"Wait!" Vivian gasped. "You mean you're gonna work for Daddy?"

"Well…yeah. Sort of," Sonja giggled. "I need to get through this interview first."

"I think you should do it. You're really smart, Mommy. You'll do good."

"Thank you, sweetheart."

Sonja gave her a quick kiss and leaned over to kiss Max as well.

"Now don't worry about me, have fun at school! Daddy will take you there right away."

"Okay. Bye Mom," the girl smiled.

Sonja shut the door and turned to her husband.

"This really _is,_ a good idea, right? Am I crazy? Tell me now and I'll just go back inside and put on my comfy clothes!"

"Come on, Sonja," he huffed, nudging her with his elbow. "Don't back out now! We've been talkin' about this _every day_ since closin' the Livingston case. NCIS is nothin' without you. If you're not perfect for the job, I don't know who is. You got this."

"You don't think I'll get any sort of special treatment since I'm your wife, do you?"

"Ha," he laughed, shaking his head. "No. As a matter of fact, it might be worse!"

"Glad to hear it," she smiled, kissing his cheek. "I'll let you know how everything went later. Or, I guess you could just track me down and ask me yourself! We'll be in the same building, after all. The team will get a kick outta that."

"Can't ya just picture it? havin' lunch on our old bar stools, gossipin' with Patton and Sebastian, Gregorio playin' her dumb pranks, crackin' open a beer after a long day," he sighed with a faraway dreamy look. "It'll be like old times."

"I'm looking forward to it, Country Mouse."

He grinned, a glint in his eye.

"Not as much as me, City Mouse."

 **Post A/N:**

Hi guys! Oh my god! It's been 84 years since I've updated this story and caught up with you all. I had a serious case of writers block and wanted the finale of this piece to be perfect, so, I hope it was everything you wanted it to be! This story was a cocktail of action, passion, heart-ache, and humor and I think it really suited each character incorporated. Is it just me or is anyone else LIVING for Sebastian/Patton scenes? I love writing those two so much! They give definite comedic relief in intense situations. Most of all, this story was meant to be a complete full-circle end to the Livingston drama that I started in the 'Mr. and Mrs. Matthews' series, so we got to give Jan Livingston and Lawrence himself a proper send-off. Who knew so much angst could build up in ten years, right? My most favorite part of all we seeing the character development of Percy and LaSalle throughout the separate stories (*cues Started from the Bottom song*). We get to see them acting like cute high school crushes to freaking PARENTS trying to balance their work and home lives. I wanted to make that scenario as realistic as possible in the flashbacks, because everything can't be candycanes and lollipops in marriages, right? They have their ups and downs. Percy and LaSalle, in my opinion, are the kind of couple to overcome that and work it out and that's exactly what they did. Bye-bye stay at home Mom, Sonja! Mama's goin back to work. Power couple AF. I also love that Gregorio played a huge part in saving the day. At this point in the future, the whole team is a tight family, and it's cute to see Gregorio really step up for the people she loves. I liked writing from her perspective a little bit here and there.

 _Anyways,_ cheers to Season 4! The writers left Persalle on shaky ground in the season finale, and I really wasn't feeling it to be honest. Why give them four step forward and ten steps back? They need to get it together! I get this is a 'slow burn OTP' (which are 99% of the couples I ship) but come on. Hopefully Season 4 we can delve a little deeper into this romance and sparks will fly. If not, I'll be here, writing fanfic for you all. Message me your thoughts this season and give me suggestions for new material! I need prompt ideas, people. I would also love a review on this epic finale. If you wanted to get crazy and read my 3 stories in order to get the full effect its- "This is Not a Date" "Mr & Mrs Matthews part 1 and 2" and this one "That's my Girl parts 1-3". I love and appreciate you guys _so_ much! I can never thank you enough for the support. Until next time…


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